


Teach Me, Tachibana

by Snurtlicious



Series: Teach Me, Tachibana [1]
Category: Free!
Genre: Haru is also a marine biologist bc why not, It's gonna be rll gay let me tell you, M/M, Makoto and Haru are both dads, Rin and Rei are Haru's sons, Sousuke is Makoto's sassy best friend, Teacher AU, a bit of angst, and Ai and Nagisa are Makoto's sons, and doin it in the butt later, dad sex in later chapters, gentle domestic violence, hot dads, this includes handy js
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-03-13
Updated: 2017-05-15
Packaged: 2018-03-17 17:19:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 22
Words: 60,773
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3537680
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Snurtlicious/pseuds/Snurtlicious
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Makoto is an elementary school teacher. He's also a single father. He lives with his two sons, Aiichirou and Nagisa, in a small apartment near the school. After having a run-in with the father of his newest student, a bizarre series of events ends with one Haruka Nanase moving in. Haruka is a marine biologist. He's also a single father. He lived with his two sons, Rin and Rei, in a large, familial home across the town. After his ex-wife returns and begins antagonizing his family, he does whatever he can to remove his children from the toxic situation. Once he meets the sweet third grade teacher, Haru can't help but ask for his help.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Broken Glasses and New Bonds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for opening my story! Before you get started, I just want to let you know I've made some revisions to the story to reflect this (http://snurtlicious.tumblr.com/post/117673086386)! I made some edits of what the kids will look like for their parents so their appearances in the story have been changed to reflect this! Thanks again! <3

It was a lazy Thursday morning. The students poured in like they always did, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. One of his favorite parts of the job was seeing how enthused the kids were each day. The teacher waved to the overprotective parents that chose to walk their children in. It was always a little heartwarming to Makoto that they would stick behind to watch their children so closely.

The third grade teacher was always eager for the day to begin. However, this lazy Thursday was special. A new student was to join the class that he had cultivated all these weeks. Makoto expected flustered, nervous parents to accompany their son inside, but the little guy came in on his own with just a slip of paper.

Makoto grinned earnestly at the boy to ease his worries and accepted the page. The dark-haired boy was Rei Nanase, and it was an apology from his father for not being able to see him inside. The blue penmanship was small and neat, quick to the point and signed Haruka Nanase. Oh, perhaps it had been the boy’s mother instead, Makoto mused. Regardless, Makoto and the majority of the class were thrilled to accept the new boy.

Especially Makoto’s own son, Nagisa. The sandy blonde, a little short for his age, was a bolt of curious, unstoppable energy. More often than not, Makoto was admonishing his own son rather than the rest of the class. Nagisa loved his father, of course, but he did not like to make it easy for him. Makoto figured that he just liked having fun and hated studying. It would only become an issue if Nagisa never grew out of his early rebellious stage.

Makoto decided that Rei would be best seated towards the front of the classroom. The new student had a bright red pair of glasses, shiny blue eyes, and a somewhat serious demeanor that made Makoto hope he would be a good student to teach. Unfortunately, the new kid seemed a bit shy as well.

The maybe over-enthusiastic Makoto decided to let the boy introduce himself. Rei’s knobby knees shook as he faced the class of nine year olds.

“G-good morning, everyone. My name is Rei Nanase and I transferred in from the city with my father and older brother to attend your school. Please take care of me.” Makoto was surprised to see Rei toss his head down in an overly formal bow. It usually took the new students a few weeks to loosen up, so he didn’t mind it too much.

The rest of the class welcomed him and said good morning. “It’s great to have you in class, Rei. I’m Mr. Tachibana and I’ll be your teacher from now on. I’ve prepared a desk for you in the second row, so if you’ll take your seat, we can begin with our lesson.” The boy nodded sharply and retreated to his seat.

As a sort of ice-breaker activity, Makoto planned an art activity to start the day. They grouped up in fours, the teacher cringing as his own son ran straight up to the new kid and ‘claimed’ him. Nagisa looked like he had terrified Rei nearly to death, but once the activity began, Nagisa seemed to calm down and Rei seemed to lighten up. Perhaps they would make a good team and Makoto wouldn’t have to worry about either of them.

After taking up the sloppy drawings of giraffes, the teacher proceeded with the lesson as usual. The day took the normal turns, slumping around lunchtime, and then again right before recess. That was Makoto's favorite time of the day. The sun was blazing high in the sky as he released the children from the prisons of their desks to let them run around and play.

Of course, Nagisa had buddied right up Rei. It looked like everything was going smoothly… at least for a little bit. In the short moment that the teacher had turned away to speak to another staff member, the hyper boy had taken the quiet one’s glasses and was running around with them.

“Rei, look! I’m you!” He laughed, until he tripped on the sidewalk. The next thing Makoto heard was a wailing shriek and the sound of plastic and glass cracking against the concrete. The paternal instinct was deeply ingrained in this particular father and the man sprang into action immediately.

“Nagisa, are you alright, what happened?” The dad looked unhappily at the bloody knee.

“Daddy, I tripped and,” he sniffled. “I tripped and hurt myself and broke Rei’s glasses on accident. I’m sorry, daddy.” Nagisa clung tightly to his father’s arms, struggling to hold back the tears that ran freely down his face.

The shattered lens in the red frames contrasted darkly against the gray cement. Makoto sighed. “It’ll be alright, Nagisa. I’ll take care of it, I’m just glad that you’re alright.” That would be another bite out of his already somewhat lacking paycheck. Being a teacher was difficult enough, but topping that off with being the single father of two… Makoto had his hands more than full with duties and now he’d have to deal with an angry parent.

Makoto passed his son off to another teacher so that he could talk to Rei who looked like he was tearing up over the broken glasses. “I’m really sorry that your glasses are broken, Rei. If you bring one of your parents in after class today, I’ll tell them that it was completely my fault. You don’t have to worry about anything.” The sniffly kid nodded and wiped his nose. He was much more of a trooper than Makoto’s own son, who was still sobbing in the other teacher’s arms.

Makoto quickly returned to his own son. “Thanks for keeping an eye on him, Sousuke. I just needed to talk to Rei about his glasses.” The energetic son did everything to the nth degree. He was still crying as he returned his steel grip to his father’s shirt.

“Eh, it’s not a big deal. I know that Nagisa likes to get a little rambunctious.” He ruffled Nagisa’s already cow-licked hair and headed towards the playground to make sure there weren’t any more accidents. Sousuke was a teacher for the grade above Makoto’s own. The two grades’ recess was at the same time, so they had met on the first day of the year. Sousuke didn’t have any kids of his own, but he loved them all the same and even babysat for Makoto from time to time.

“Why don’t we go to the nurse and get you patched up?” Makoto tried to soothe his son. Nagisa just shook his head up and down in a half-hearted yes. The father stood and carried his son down the bright, overly cheery halls of the school. He’d only been working at this particular school for a short time. Thankfully everyone had welcomed him with open arms, and even legs referring to the fifth grade teacher that had shamelessly hit on him, but Makoto liked it just as much as on his first day.

After the nurse, a young redheaded man, finished wrapping up Nagisa’s knee, the two of them headed back to class. Sousuke had wrangled his friend’s students in a quiet, single-file line outside the room. Makoto thanked him and hustled his class back into the room. Tomorrow was the day of a spelling test and they desperately needed to go over their words again or it was likely that many of them would fail.

After the hiccup at recess, nothing else went wrong. Rei wore his broken glasses and sat quietly in his desk, while Nagisa stayed silent and sniffled occasionally. The teacher made a point to give the students a study sheet as they all put their belongings into their desks and began to leave. The longer than usual day was finally at an end.

Rather, it almost was. Makoto still had to speak with Rei’s parents about his glasses. He waited with his son after Rei left, so that he could return with whomever. Makoto didn’t expect the man, probably around the same age as him, to walk into the room. The father and son both had the same dark hair, same eyes, and same quiet aura, but his father was something mysterious and, frankly, Makoto found him to be a bit enchanting. The other boy he had with him, which was not Rei, only somewhat resembled his brother or father. He had the same onyx shaded hair that went to his shoulders, but bright maroon eyes that seemed to leap from his skull. His other son must’ve taken after his mother.

“Ah,” he broke out of his reverie. “Good afternoon, Mr. Nanase.” The man extended his hand to the boy’s father.

“Just Haru is fine.” He replied, taking Makoto’s hand in return. His skin was cool and dry, completely unlike how Makoto was expecting him to be. Most parents were always fidgety and irrational when they were called in about their kids. It was normal. Haru was probably, no, definitely not normal.

Now it was down to the nitty-gritty. “Well, I’m sure you’ve noticed that your son’s glasses are broken. I just want to let you know that it was completely my fault. My son took them when they were playing and he tripped and it was just carelessness. I’ll pay for the new pair myself, just send me the receipt.” Makoto took a deep breath. Here it came, the yelling, the red face. The teacher had seen it all before.

Instead, Haru looked to his son, who had long since recovered and nodded. “That’s fine. It was only a pair of glasses and Rei seems alright. Thanks for telling me.” That went much easier than he expected it to.

“Sure, it’s no problem. That’s what I’m here to do.” He tried to tell himself that he was much more than a glorified babysitter. At least he was teaching the kids something worthwhile.

Finally, Makoto’s other son came into the room, pausing in the doorway to assess the scene that was playing out. “Rin?” Ai asked. They must’ve had class together as well. Makoto made a mental note to ask Sousuke about it later.

Rin, apparently, ran straight over to Makoto’s eldest son. “Hi! What are you doing here?”

“My dad’s the teacher.” Ai pointed hesitantly at his father. At this point, Nagisa began to rouse from the nap he’d been taking.

“Daddy, can we go home? I’m tired.” He interjected to the room.

“Yes, we can go in just a minute. I’m still taking care of a little business with your friends’ dad.” Makoto smiled at his own son, anticipating the chaos that was seconds from breaking out. “It looks like our boys all have class together then,” he noted aloud, seeing how flustered Ai was getting while talking to Rin. “If you’re busy on the weekends sometime, I wouldn’t mind babysitting for you, Mr. Nan-- err, Haru.”

The other man nodded. “I’ll keep that in mind if something ever comes up.”

After that, Makoto made sure to mention the spelling test that was the next day and assure Haru that his son’s grade would be waived since he was so new. Haru was obviously ready to leave by this point, so the teacher bid him and his kids farewell and started packing up.

Makoto had a feeling that he would see more of the Nanase father, and that was exciting. He could always use more friends, especially ones that also had kids. He shook Nagisa awake and grabbed his bag.

“Are you two ready to go home?” The dad prompted his kids. “I was thinking that we could order pizza tonight and rent a movie?” Something like that would normally be reserved for a Friday night, but Makoto felt light and decided to treat his kids.

Nagisa immediately jolted awake and Ai’s teal eyes sparkled with excitement. Makoto loved being a dad; it was just when a lot of things went wrong at once that he started to grow a little weary. He didn’t even have to try to get his kids out into the car, they were so excited. As they left the school, Makoto pulled his phone out to call the pizza place. He ordered a large pepperoni pizza and some cinnamon breadsticks for dessert. That _really_ worked his two kids up, and all the stress of the day melted away.

Makoto stopped at the supermarket to rent the newest Disney movie from the kiosk. Nagisa and Aiichiro both loved to sing along, so their dad always tried to keep a steady supply of movies that would cultivate their interests a little bit more. After another quick stop off to pick up the food, they pressed on home.

It was a respectable two bedroom, one bathroom apartment. Really, it was all Makoto could afford on a teacher’s salary. He made sure whatever money was left over went towards savings, college, and food. The three of them settled into the couch with two slices for Makoto, and one for each of the boys. After he hit play, Makoto leaned back against the black cushions and relaxed. Surrounded by his children, even in such a cozy place, he still couldn’t suppress the nagging feeling that he was missing something.

Or someone.


	2. Picture Frames and Permission Slips

Piled up all snug together, the family had dozed off on the plush couch. Makoto woke up sometime in the middle of the night and carried his two sweet sons to their beds. It was sort of unfortunate that the two had to share the other small room. They were getting older and would likely want separate rooms in a few years. Their father wanted desperately to get a bigger apartment, but it wasn’t feasible on his smaller salary. The only solution that he’d mustered was to enter a relationship so that the dual income could support all of them.

That was a bit of a pipe dream, though. Makoto flipped on Ai’s small ducky nightlight, pushed through the dirty clothes on the floor, and shut the door snugly behind him. At least the next day was a field trip day… Wait! He had completely forgotten to tell Rei’s dad about it! Great, now Makoto had to make sure that he caught Haru when he dropped his sons off. That would be a feat, since the man had left his own kids out to dry on their first day.

Makoto stopped in his tracks again. Wasn’t tomorrow also a test day? Had he gotten the dates mixed up again? It had happened once before, on the day of the history fair. The slightly overstressed teacher had planned a test, not remotely related to history, on that same day. It ended up being cancelled, but it caused a lot of phone calls from irritated parents. Rei’s dad already knew the grade wouldn’t count though, so perhaps he’d be forgiven for his slight error.

“Man”, he sighed, stepping into his bedroom. Other than the bed, a nightstand, a dresser, and a pile of ambiguously clean clothing in the corner, Makoto’s bedroom was not very furnished. Only a picture of a happy, unbroken family sat on the nightstand. He didn’t like to look at it very much, despite it having been years ago. It brought up too many unwanted, morose feelings; feelings that he’d pushed down so he could be strong for his children. That was just part of a parent’s job, after all.

The tired man sighed and flopped limply into the mattress. There wasn’t anything he could do to change his circumstances, though he’d tried numerous times. Makoto, on some level, had accepted that sometimes things just happened, for better or worse. The struggle was in living with the happenings. He pushed the thoughts out of his mind and began to fall asleep.

With a yawn, green eyes woke to the gray-blue light of the alarm clock. As usual, it was ten minutes before the alarm went off. For some reason he never understood, he always managed to wake up before his alarm, even if he changed the time. The man’s body just knew. He slogged out of the bed and stopped to yawn at the window.

The amazing vista view of the parking lot below was covered in fog. He’d have to be careful when he was driving this morning if it didn’t clear up. Stepping off towards the bathroom, Makoto’s first stop was a shower. Normally he took one at night, but he couldn’t tear himself away from his sons when they were so excited to be together.

After a quick shave, and maybe one or two nicks of the blade, Makoto got to waking his kids up. He had to stop and snicker a little when he entered the room. At some point in the night, Nagisa had climbed out of his bed and was sleeping soundly with his brother. Aiichiro was still afraid of the dark, even though he had a nightlight. Nagisa liked to lay with him to calm him down. Sometimes, Ai would even bother dear old Dad to let his son sleep with him. That led to Nagisa complaining and then they were all sleeping soundly together on Makoto’s queen-sized bed.

Makoto gently shook Ai’s shoulder. “Wake up, sleepy head. It’s time for you to get in the shower.” The small brunette opened his misty sea-foam eyes and yawned. In one quick motion, he shirked off Nagisa’s arms and wrapped the slender limbs around his dad’s waist.

“Can we stay home today, Daddy? I’m still sleepy.” Ai was warm against Makoto’s stomach, but the responsible parent, and teacher, in him had to decline. Unfortunately.

“You know we’re going to the aquarium today though, Ai. I already said I’d check you out so you could go with my class. I’d never leave you behind, you know that.” Makoto leaned down onto his knee and pulled a sniffling Ai into a strong dad hug.

“I know, I just wanted to stay in bed with Naggy for a while longer.” The boy turned to look at his brother who was still out like a light, despite Ai jostling him all around to get out of bed.

“I wanted to stay in bed too, but it’s a field trip day and Friday! We can rent another movie tonight and the three of us will play all weekend, alright?” Makoto promised. That made Ai light up faster than a Christmas tree and diffused the slightly melancholic tension that had quickly built up.

“I’ll go get in the shower right now then!” He beamed up to his dad. “I love you!” Ai, like a shot of lightning, exited the room. When he wanted to, the boy could be just as energetic as his fireball of a brother.

The next tribulation was waking his other son up. Makoto had to be even more delicate with him as. If I just tell him about the field trip, Makoto convinced himself, it’ll go smoothly. It wasn’t until he jiggled the sleeping demon awake, that he realized his critical error.

Cracking open rosy lids, Nagisa began screaming about how he wanted to go back to sleep. That was why movie and pizza night was usually reserved for Fridays; they didn’t have to get up early on Saturdays. Perhaps what had worked for Aiichiro would work for his brother.

Makoto reached across the single mattress and pulled the fussy child into an even stronger dad hug. “Don’t forget, the aquarium is today. The sooner you’re up, the sooner we can go. I bet you’ll even get to hang out with your new friend, Rei.” Makoto rubbed his son’s back.

“No!” He spat. “Reirei hates me for breaking his glasses.” The slippery little boy wiggled out of Makoto’s arms and retreated to the safety of the blanket.

The dad rolled his eyes and sat down on the edge of the bed. “Did he tell you that or do you just think that, Naggy? I’m sure if you apologized, he’d forgive you.” This kid was hopeless. He’d thought that his own brother hated him once, and that was only for tripping over him and spilling some juice on his shirt.

After a few seconds, the blue blanket, printed with rubber ducks, opened up. “Do you really think he’ll forgive me? I know we just met, but I don’t want my new friend to hate me!” He jumped back up and began sobbing into Makoto’s shoulder. That was just like him. The crying didn’t particularly bother him, Makoto only wished his sons had a little bit thicker skin.

“Shh,” he tried to soothe him. “I’ll even talk to him if you want me to.” That was met with an immediate protest.

“No, no! I’ll do it. That would be so embarrassing, you’re my dad!” He shouted through his tears. Ai toddled back into the room, a ducky towel covering his wet hair.

“Alright, then I’ll let you handle it like a big boy.” A pat later, and Nagisa was laughing again. “Now go take a shower like your older brother and we’ll all have breakfast together.”

The father was gifted with a grin that filled his heart with a warm fatherly glow. Nagisa ran out of the room faster than Ai had and Makoto just shook his head. Makoto stepped past his first son to head into the kitchen and start making breakfast. His own parents had always stressed family meals with his younger siblings, so Makoto always made a point for them to eat breakfast and dinner together.

After frying up a few eggs, making some toast, and cereal for Nagisa, the three of them sat down at the small dining table stuck in the corner. They were working against the clock today because Makoto needed to make sure they made it in time to catch the Nanase father for the permission slip so Rei wouldn’t be left out.

Once backpacks were packed, the family set off towards the elementary school. As a concerned father, he worried about the fog still, but it had mostly cleared up. Once he pulled into the parking spot, he ushered his kids on into the classroom while he waited in the parking lot for the two little boys with the strangely calm dad. There was something weird about him that Makoto couldn’t quite put his finger on, but it was a little intriguing to him.

Perhaps it was the casual way he treated his children, or maybe he trusted them to make good choices. He was either an amazing dad or a terrible one, and Tachibana didn’t know which one would be more surprising.

After a few more cars started to roll in, Makoto quickly picked out the dark-headed boys getting out of a car. He stepped off the grass and into the drive, nearly getting hit by a parent in a rush. A honk of the horn and a flustered Makoto later, he knocked on Haruka’s car window.

“Good morning, Mr. Nanase. I completely spaced yesterday after the glasses incident, but we’re supposed to be going on a field trip to the local aquarium today, and I wanted to give you a chance to sign the permission slip so that your son, or sons if you want to check the older one out as well, can go with my class.” Makoto awkwardly held a pen and permission slip towards the surprised looking father.

“Just Haru is fine,” he repeated. “And yes, I’ll sign it. I don’t know how much fun Rei and Rin will have though. I work at the aquarium, so they spend a lot of time there.” A quick scrawl later, and the same signature from yesterday was on the page. Even his handwriting seemed to be perfectly simplified; like there was no room for anything extraneous.

“Ah,” Makoto gasped. “I guess we might see you there then. That’ll probably make your son popular in the class.” That was not an idle promise. Kids were really impressionable, and seeing one of their parents doing something cool, being a teacher not included, would likely boost his desirability.

Haru just shrugged a little as the car behind him abruptly honked. “I should go.” He said plainly. Makoto stared deeply into his eyes, bluer than the tumultuous sea, before coming back to his senses and bidding the man farewell. That had gotten a little more awkward than Makoto cared for.

After hurrying back to a full classroom, he called the office to send down one Rin Nanase. His father had given him permission to come on the field trip, and he could always keep Ai company. Everybody won. A little bit later, the spunky kid walked through the door. Makoto, in his best teacher impression, explained that they were going to the aquarium and his father had given him permission to accompany his class.

Rin smiled a big, toothy grin and popped over to Ai’s side. The Nanase boys seemed to get along well with his own sons. Makoto idly wondered if that was an omen for a moment, and then realized that they had a cheese-wagon waiting for them out in front of the school. Makoto lined the students up, single-file. Rin and Ai stood with their brothers, not wanting to disrupt the flow.

Hustling down the hallway, the teacher caught sight of another man hustling down the halls towards him. “Good morning, Tachibana. Are you taking your little orcas off to the aquarium today?”

It was that fifth grade teacher, the one who’d hit on Makoto near the beginning of the year. He’d tried to forget about it, but he plainly remembered the glass of champagne that had been thrust in his hand and the crotch that had grinded against his thigh. Kisumi.

“Yes I am, Mr. Shigino.” Makoto tried to smile at the man with the pearly pink hair and unsettlingly purple eyes. His sly smirk stuck with Makoto, who jumped a little when Kisumi copped a feel of his lower back as he walked past. That was completely sexual harassment. If Makoto didn’t have a job to do, he’d probably report him. Maybe he was the one who needed to get thicker skin.

Hopefully none of the students, god forbid his own kids, had seen that display. Failing to suppress a blush, he moved along to where the bus was at. The P.E. teacher, the older brother of the nurse, was pretty much exactly the same kind of guy. They had the same orange hair, same incredibly excitable attitude, and same taste in teachers. As far as he was aware, they’d both been after Sousuke for quite some time. Sousuke wanted no part of either of them, but he didn’t mind letting them pine their little hearts away for him. It was pretty twisted, actually.

Makoto greeted Sei calmly, taking role as the students boarded the bus. After all the little guys were ready and accounted for, the teacher climbed the steps to the bus to see how they’d buddied up. The buddy system had been explained, and they were instructed to pair up with a friend. As he figured, Nagisa and Rei were sitting across from Rin and Ai. Everything had fallen neatly into place for the field trip.

Hopefully nothing will go wrong, Makoto prayed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so I was a little more comfortable with 3rd person this time around, and I think this chapter came out really cute!
> 
> I just wanted Makoto being a dumb dad with his children tbh. Isn't that what we all want?


	3. Butterfly Penguins and Duck Sharks

Driving through the small town, the school bus headed towards one of the few points of interest that Iwatobi had. The aquarium was a beautiful piece of modern architecture. Swooping steel awnings paired with shining mirror-like surfaces made the building truly astounding to behold. Makoto had been there once before to scout out what they would be studying on their field trip, but it still managed to take his breath away.

Once the bus pulled into the parking lot, the teacher read everyone the rules. For the first part of the trip, they would all travel together as a group, learning about different sea creatures and participating in some activities. After that, they would be given half an hour to walk around and observe whatever they wanted before they left. It was a pretty lax schedule compared to some of the horror stories he’d heard from Sousuke. Makoto was a hearty subscriber to keeping it simple, especially in light of some of his other flubs.

The kids shuffled off the bus in a din. Returning to their little pairs, they marched right into the front door. Nagisa stuck right up against Rei’s side, while Ai tried desperately to keep a small space between himself and Rin. Makoto cracked a smile at his kids and ran after them to meet with the tour guide. Once he passed through the clear glass doors, he noticed Rin and Rei’s dad speaking to a woman near the entrance. Haru was dressed casually in some blue jeans and wearing a yellow blazer with the aquarium’s logo on the breast. For some unfathomable reason, the logo was a bird with a rock for a head, as opposed to a fish.

Haruka glanced at Makoto for a moment before dismissing the cheery woman and approaching the mildly frazzled teacher. “Looks like I’m your tour guide for the day.” His already apathetic expression flattened even further.

Makoto’s eyebrow tipped up a bit in surprise. “I’m sorry? The kids are really excited though, I hope you’ll cheer up for them.” Without missing a beat, the teacher’s hesitant look turned into a warm smile. Unfortunately, warm smiles didn’t work nearly as well on adults so Haru merely rolled his eyes and turned around, snubbing Makoto’s simple gesture. Trying not to make an annoyed face at the back of Haru’s head, the man took a few quick steps to lead the class with the tour guide.

As the tour began, their bored looking guide seemed to light up a bit. Makoto had already found him sort of stimulating, but the way his eyes seemed to glimmer as he approached the water captivated him. The dismal attitude and careless aura dissipated into an air of adoration. Haruka truly loved the sea creatures that he cared for.

The class stopped in front of a large tank and the kids shouted as some dolphins swam by. The inside of the tank was an amazing amalgam of all sorts of corals and brightly colored fish. The fluorescent lights beaming in the top made it look like a teal Mediterranean Sea. Makoto tried not to laugh as Nagisa pressed his face right to the glass. “Daddy, look! Look at the dolphins, daddy!”

“I think these are the bottlenose dolphins.” Rei cited. “These particular ones are Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins.” The little boy with old, cracked glasses seemed to falter a bit and looked towards his father at the end. “Is that right, Dad?” Of course he would pass his zeal for sea life onto his kids.

Haruka nodded. “They are.” He said simply. Makoto still wasn’t sure about Haru’s parenting style. He had a very hot-cold method that involved some coddling, but mostly he let his kids function independently. That seemed to work for him, so who was Makoto to judge?

“The fish are really pretty, aren’t they Rin?” Ai’s eyes were as wide as they’d been in the morning. Despite ducks being his favorite animals, he did enjoy a good dolphin. And also giraffes?

Rin busted out laughing. “They’re not fish, Ai! They’re mammals. They breathe air just like us!” He beamed over at his friend with bright, shiny teeth. The brunet lad just nodded in blatant disbelief.

“He’s right, Aiichiro. Dolphins have little holes on their backs that they breathe air through.” Makoto explained. “They have to go all the way up to the surface of the ocean and breathe just like us when we go to the beach.” Despite only having gone to the beach once or twice, Ai should know that. Makoto couldn’t help that he was afraid of the ocean.

“That’s amazing.” He whispered, not taking his eyes off the gray creatures. Taking his eye off his kids, Makoto took a moment to answer the other students’ questions about the dolphins. Whenever he couldn’t answer a question, the teacher looked to Haru. He had a depth of knowledge that Makoto couldn’t hope to match. That made the teacher admire the marine biologist even more.

Near the end of the first part of the tour, Makoto’s impression of Haruka was wavering. At first, he seemed like a bit of a prick, but after spending some time with him very literally in his element, he appeared to become the epitome of the phrase ‘still waters run deep’.

The class gathered in front of the two men, looking at them both expectantly. “Alright, guys. I want you to take the notebooks I handed out and draw me a picture of your favorite animal that you saw here. You and your partner don’t have to pick the same animal, but make sure you share your markers.” Makoto opened his bag and passed out the six packs of markers to the pairs. Moments later, the kids scattered like marbles all over the aquamarine tile floor.

Makoto sighed and slid down onto the bench next to Haru for a small break. The skylight shone in directly on where the two of them sat, like the heavens themselves were watching them. Creepy.

“So,” Makoto offered to Haru. “Rei mentioned that you were from the city. Which one, if I can ask?” It was a shallow attempt at small talk. Maybe Haru would bite and he could get to know him a bit better.

Haru glanced over at him, the sour look from earlier marring his features. “Tokyo.”

“Oh, I went to university in Tokyo.” Makoto was surprised. He wondered if they lived there at the same time. “Well, after we had Ai.” He added. “His mother was great. She worked a job while I went to school and she cared for our son at the same time.” The dad’s gaze searched around the room and fell on his son next to Rin, scrawling down his best rendition of a great white shark.

“Nagisa was born about a year and a half later. When I graduated, she finally quit her job and we moved out here so I could get one.” Makoto reminisced fondly. However, the memories quickly turned bleak. After Ai’s fourth birthday, things went bad and Makoto incurred a large amount of debt from the hospital bills. He quickly halted waltzing down that lane. It was too painful and the one tear that had escaped from his eye was embarrassing enough.

“Sorry,” he said to Haru, pulling the cuff of his sleeve up to wipe his face. “I’m sure you and your wife are very happy.” Makoto hoped that would erase his accidental admission, but Haru seemed to be mulling over something of his own.

“Divorced.” Blue eyes blinked back at green. “I’m divorced.” Makoto swallowed hard and opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. How was he supposed to console someone that was basically a stranger when they had just admitted something deeply personal to each other?

“I shouldn’t have assumed. I apologize.” The man looked away from the enigma next to him. Makoto wondered if that was why he was cold and a little distant. If Haruka was a divorcee, he’d either had the kids forced on him, or there was an ugly custody battle for the two boys. That would explain a bit of why he treated them so unusually.

“Don’t apologize. I was just reciprocating the story.” Haru’s lips turned up ever so slightly and his eyebrows went down, in a knowing, melancholic smile.

Breaking in through the suddenly heavy atmosphere, Nagisa and Rei ran over with their pictures to show them off. Nagisa had drawn a penguin with a bright yellow beak pointing off to the left. Rei, strangely, had drawn a butterfly.

“Rei, was there a butterfly lurking around somewhere?” Makoto asked, trying to remain as polite as possible. His dad was right there, after all.

Glasses bobbed up and down a bit as he nodded. “Over in front of the penguins. There were a couple of pretty Monarchs.” Jeez, Rei was like a walking encyclopedia. Haru took the notebook from his son and examined it closely, like he was trying to search for every crease and fold in the third grader’s crude drawing.

“You should work on your wing shape a bit,” he replied. “But the colors are perfect. I’d give you an A-plus.” At first, Rei pouted, but then he smiled up at his dad. Makoto took back every negative thing he’d thought about Haru’s parenting. He seemed to know exactly what to say to Rei to please him.

“I’ll give both of you A-pluses. Your drawings are great, regular Picassos over here.” Makoto teased, ruffling Nagisa’s hair.

Makoto took that opportunity to stand up and scout the room. Most of the kids had finished up their art by that point and were talking quietly. However, something was missing.

Rin and Ai were nowhere to be seen.

Before he panicked, the teacher took a few minutes to travel around the room, looking in corners, nooks, anywhere the two could hide. He even went so far as to call their names.

When it all failed, he ran to Haru in a flurry. “Rin and Ai are missing, Haru. I can’t find them anywhere.” Makoto used a hushed tone. The last thing he needed was to work his whole class into a tizzy.

“What do you mean you can’t find them? They can’t have gotten off far.” Haru scowled.

Suddenly, they heard a shriek off above one of the tanks. “Damn it, Rin.” The guide took off towards one of the back doors and, not knowing any better, Makoto followed. Through the large door, around the corner and up some stairs, that was where frantic shouting was coming from. 

Opening the door to the platform above the shark tanks, Makoto’s heart nearly stopped. Ai was leaned over the side, screaming and crying hysterically while he held a white knuckle death grip on Rin’s arm. The red-eyed boy dangled precariously over the edge, just inches from dipping into the water with the sharks. Makoto’s instincts kicked in and he shoved past Haru and snatched the two boys up and out of harm’s way.

Pulling Ai aside, Makoto was seriously about to stroke out. “Are you alright? Oh my god, Ai. Not you too. I can’t lose you too.” The man cracked when the arms went around his neck and the apologies started to roll in like thunder.

“What the hell were you thinking?” Haru shouted louder than Ai had initially. He had grabbed Rin by his shoulders and his hands were shaking violently. “Do you want to get hurt? Why would you do something like that?” Makoto was about to speak up and admonish Haru for treating his son so harshly when Haru’s arms moved around him and the man started sobbing. “Damn it, you have to be more careful than that. You don’t want your mom to take you away from me, do you?”

Makoto froze. His initial thought had been correct. There must’ve been a messy custody battle that ended up with Haru winning his sons. Pulling Ai into his arms, the lonely father began to wonder why he was even interested in Haru. What was it about him? Was it their similar circumstances? Was it because their kids got along?

Was it the way that his blue eyes sparkled just like hers had?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> W EL P
> 
> WELCOME TO TRAGIC ANIME BACKSTORY HELL, I WILL BE YOUR GUIDE
> 
> also p sure I have 3rd person down thanks for reading!


	4. Phone Calls and Sudden Sleepovers

Makoto tried not to think about what he’d witnessed as they descended the steps back into the aquarium. Ai had long since stopped crying, but the whites of his eyes were pink and puffy… like Haru’s. The man had basically broken down right in front of him. Makoto was thinking about it again.

It was hard not to. He’d only known the man for a little more than a day, and the two of them had already shared small details of their marital lives and then nearly watched their children drown in a shark tank together. Talk about people coming out of nowhere.

Checking his watch, he realized that they were going to be departing late, which meant they’d get back to the school late, and he’d likely have to meet with a few annoyed parents. Gathering his class up and checking the roster off, he noticed that Rin and Rei had broken away and were near their dad. Haru looked sick, tired, and exhausted. Makoto thought it might be a bit presumptuous, but he decided to approach Haru again.

“Excuse me, Haru.” Makoto took a delicate approach. “I was wondering if maybe you’d like me to watch your kids after school today. I planned on going out for pizza and renting a movie for the boys, and I wouldn’t mind babysitting for you for a little while.”

Haru scanned him for a moment, clearly weighing his options. After a second, he took a look down at his kids. “Do you two want to go over to Nagisa and Ai’s house for a little while today? Just until I get off work.” Almost immediately, Rin began to bob up and down.

“Yes, yes we do!” The older boy answered, completely ignoring his brother’s reply. Rei was, understandably, a bit wary, but agreed.

“Give me your address and phone number.” Haru pulled out his phone, followed by Makoto. They made quick work of exchanging critical information.

“What time should I expect you?” The sudden babysitter asked, slipping Haru’s number into his pocket.

“I get off work around six and I should be able to pick them up around seven.” His voice was still a little nasally from the crying. Makoto was glad that he agreed to the impromptu playdate. It would be a good treat for a Friday night.

“Alright, we need to get going. So I’ll see you tonight, at seven.” If that didn’t sound like they were planning a date, Makoto wasn’t sure what would. Shaking that off, the teacher followed Haru’s sons back to the group and then led them to where Sei was impatiently waiting with the bus. The orange-haired man didn’t complain at all about their tardiness, but Makoto could tell he was less than thrilled that he had to wait around.

Makoto smiled apologetically. “Sorry, there was an incident. I had to take care of it before we left.” That was about as in-depth as the teacher was willing to go. Haru basically had the power to get Makoto fired. The teacher had gotten careless and two of the students he was supposed to be watching had trespassed on private property and very nearly drowned. Luckily, it seemed like there wasn’t anything to worry about. Haru didn’t seem like the type to blame others, for better or worse.

Makoto leaned back in the somewhat uncomfortable bus seat, digging his nails into the fake blue leather. Today was going to be a day without a break. The group of kids was chattering away behind him about how much fun they were going to have and how excited they were to get to hang out. Makoto caught some offhand comment from Rin about how he didn’t have any friends at his old school, but that was hard to judge. He was painfully aware that his own kids hadn’t had any friends up until this point.

Makoto managed to shut out the rest of the noise for the twenty minute bus ride back to the school. Thankfully, traffic had been light and they’d returned only a few minutes behind schedule. No one complained.

In light of that, there was no reason for them to wait around, so Makoto led the quartet to his car and they all climbed inside to go get the pizza. Normally, the father would’ve ordered ahead of time since he knew what Ai and Nagisa liked, but he wanted to make sure that Haru’s kids got something that they liked too.

The inside of the pizza place was relatively clean, compared to some of the other places in town. The walls and floors were covered in the same tacky yellow color, with booths flanking them as they walked to the counter.

“What kind of toppings do you like on your pizza?” Makoto asked Rin and Rei.

“I like meat and banana peppers and pineapple!” Rin answered first, putting his hands on his hips.

Rei took a moment to scan over the menu, cautiously analytic. “Can I just get extra cheese and pepperoni?” Makoto had a feeling that he was bowled over by his brother a lot.

Makoto nodded. “You can both get whatever you’d like.” The man looked to the clerk and placed an order for two medium pizzas. One was half pepperoni with extra cheese, half meat lovers, banana peppers, and pineapple. The other was just a simple pepperoni pizza, how Nagisa and Ai liked it.

The half-hour wait was long, and it was kind of difficult to keep Nagisa and Rin planted in their seat for more than two minutes at a time. How strange it was that they favored each other so well. Ai and Rei had both loosened up throughout the day and appeared to be much more comfortable around Rin and Nagisa.

Makoto was snapped out of his reverie by the shout of his last name across the room. “Tachibana, your pizzas are ready!” He wrangled his squad of kids and collected the pizzas. One quick stop at the movie kiosk later, they very literally reached the homestretch of the day.

Once they were inside the apartment, Makoto felt a lot less stressed. He’d done an immaculate job at making sure that there was nothing that the kids could use to injure themselves with accidentally. That was because he couldn’t be watching them one hundred percent of the time, so he just minimized the dangers.

The four boys had, of course, immediately gone to the bedroom. Setting the pizza boxes down on the table, Makoto could hear their conversation.

“You two share a bedroom?” Rin shouted, almost unnecessarily loud. Ai was probably uncomfortable again.

“We do! It’s a lot of fun.” Nagisa chimed in, shameless and bold as ever.

“That’s so awesome! I wish me and Rei could share a bedroom. It would be like we were hanging out all the time!” Rin’s volume went down, and he sounded a little envious. He must not have realized that it was out of necessity, not choice.

While they took some time to examine every facet of the bedroom, Makoto collapsed back onto the couch. He didn’t realize that he’d fallen asleep until a little blonde troll jumped onto his lap. “Daddy, wake up! We’re hungry.”

Makoto opened his eyes slowly, prompting Nagisa to shake him some more. That had been part of his plan. The father reached one arm out and tossed his son up onto his chest so that he could bear hug and aggressively jiggle him.

Nagisa began to laugh and didn’t resist at all. “So you guys are ready to eat, huh?” Makoto tossed his legs over the side of the couch and carried Nagisa over to the table. Depositing him into the chair with the rest of the kids behind him, he noticed the clock on the stove said it was a little after six. They must’ve played for a long while before waking him up.

The father was only a little disappointed because they wouldn’t have time to finish the movie together before Haru came to pick his sons up. Even still, he got out five plates, served everyone, and then plopped down with the kids in front of the TV. Makoto had picked out his favorite Disney movie this time, The Little Mermaid.

Nagisa and Rin wasted no time in belting out every song that the movie had, whether the tunes and lyrics were right or wrong. Normally, Ai would’ve been right there with his brother, but he sat quietly with Rei and just watched.

Before he even realized it, they had finished eating and… the movie had ended. It was well past seven thirty by that point. Makoto changed to some cartoons and went into his bedroom to call Haru. The phone rang once and went to voicemail. That was alarming. What if something had happened to him?

Makoto didn’t let it bother him while he was watching the kids. They were currently all fixated on some show about alien rock women, and he didn’t want to bother them by mentioning that their father was late to pick them up.

As the night wore on, Makoto tried calling Haru multiple times, and finally at ten, he answered. “Hello?” He sounded pissed.

“Haru! It’s Makoto,” he replied, sighing in relief. At least nothing had happened to him.

“Makoto, I… I hate to ask you this, but can you watch the kids for the night?” That was a bombshell. “Some stuff happened once I got off work, and I don’t want the kids to be around until they’re gone.” Who was ‘they’?

Makoto was less than thrilled to have to keep watch over all four kids, but he agreed. “I will, I guess. Is there anything special I should know to help them fall asleep?”

A moment of silence, as in the phone being muted, later, Haru answered in an even more aggravated voice. “Rin will go right to sleep, but you’ll have to read a story for Rei. I’ve got to go, I’m sorry. I’ll call you in the morning when I can come pick them up.”

The line cut out.

Makoto’s hand slid down the side of his face and fell limply into his lap. What was that all about? There wasn’t any time to ponder it. Coming out from the bedroom, Makoto saw that all of the kids had already fallen asleep except for Rei.

“When is Dad going to come get us?” He asked Makoto, obviously bored with whatever was playing quietly on the TV.

“I was just coming to tell you that he’s asked me to look after you for the night. It’s like a sleepover,” he paused. “Or it would be if everyone else wasn’t out already. Do you want me to read you something to help you fall asleep?” Ai read sometimes, so he had a lot of books stashed away near his bed.

Rei freed himself from the pile of sleeping bodies next to him and followed Makoto into his sons’ bedroom. “Pick whichever one you want.” The boy regarded the books quietly and settled for an encyclopedia. That was a bit of an odd choice, but he realized why. Rei had opened it to the page about the dolphins they’d seen earlier that day.

“Will you read this to me?” He held the book out to Makoto, who smiled and nodded in reply.

“The Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin is a sub-species of bottlenose dolphin that lives in the waters of India, northern Australia, southern China, the Red Sea, and the eastern coast of Africa. This particular dolphin’s back is dark gray and its belly is light gray or white with gray spots.” Makoto read out of the book for a good ten minutes, absorbing as much information about dolphins as he could.

The little boy slackened and then slowly fell asleep right on Ai’s bed. Makoto sat the book back onto the pile and scooped Rei up in his arms to put him on the couch, covering him with a blanket. He also covered the other sleeping boys in blankets and took a seat in the armchair next to the couch.

Tonight had been an adventure for sure, but Makoto still couldn’t help but wonder why Haru had to leave his sons with him. Who was the person he was fighting with?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay I literally just wanted more of them all being eggs together, I can't help myself.
> 
> Thanks for reading! :D


	5. Sleeping Beauties and Tangled Feet

Makoto jolted awake at the sound of a knock on the door. At some point in the night, Rin had climbed off the floor to join his brother and was curled up next to him on the sofa. His own sons, however, were nowhere to be seen, so they had likely gone to their beds to escape the uncomfortable floor. Taking a moment to wipe the sleep out of his eyes, Makoto stretched his back out and walked over to the door.

Turning the silver knob, the tired man caught a glimpse of blue as he pulled the heavy door open. “Good morning, Makoto.” The elusive father figure had returned for his kids.

Makoto’s eyes opened a bit more and he opened the door further so that Haru could come in. “Good morning.” Makoto nodded a bit, a little perplexed and a little frustrated. “What time is it?”

Haru checked his watch. “It’s around nine. I tried calling before I left, but no one picked up.” Oops. Makoto had forgotten all about his phone once he’d read Rei to sleep. He hadn’t lasted very much longer after that anyways.

“Ah, I left my phone in my room. I fell asleep in the arm chair over there.” The man pointed over to where red chair sat, poised near where his sons were curled up on the couch. “Do you want me to make you coffee or something?”

Haru stared at him for a moment, obviously trying to decide how to answer. After a mildly awkward moment, he closed his eyes and nodded. “I guess.” Makoto gestured for him to take a seat and stepped into the kitchen to put the grounds and water in the machine and push the button. The entire time, he kept an eye on Haru and noticed that he was looking a little worse for the wear. Under his eyes, the bags were colored deep purple and his hair looked a little greasy and unkempt. The few times before, the quiet man had just looked apathetic, but today he just looked hollowed out.

The question kept nagging in the back of Makoto’s head. What on earth had happened? It wasn’t his place to ask, though. They’d only known each other for a handful of days, and Makoto was never really the type to stick his nose in places that it didn’t belong.

Pulling two green mugs out of the cabinet, he nearly poured sugar and milk into both of them. “How do you want it?” Good thing he managed to stop himself.

“Black.” He replied listlessly. Makoto found it a little bit annoying that he only replied in measured amounts, a word here, a word there. Not more than a sentence or two when he was chattier. Perhaps he should just cut the man some slack. He looked sick and tired and he could probably use a nap. Makoto had to repress the offer to let Haru sleep over with his sons.

Pouring coffee, and nothing else, into one mug, he passed it off to Haru and then took a seat across from him. He was fully awake by now, but at least. Rin and Rei hadn’t woken up yet.

“Thank you for looking after them last night. I’m sorry that you had to do that, you can forget the glasses incident. You’ve more than made up for it.” He sat the, already empty, mug down on the brown tabletop. Yikes, that was fast.

“It’s not a problem. They all had fun together last night. I’m just glad that Ai and Nagisa are making friends, honestly. I know they can both be a bit hard to handle sometimes.” It was a truth from one father to a next, surely he’d understand.

Haru nodded knowingly, assuaging Makoto’s worries. “I agree. I was a little worried when we moved out here, but they seem to be adjusting well. I have you to thank for that as well, since you invited them to come to the aquarium together.”

The brunette shook his head and took a long sip of his coffee. “It was nothing, I just wanted them to feel welcome. I know how hard it can be to adjust to new, unfamiliar situations.” Though, they were vastly different situations.

“I appreciate it.” Haru said simply. And, two seconds later, they were back to an awkward, semi-uncomfortable silence. Haru still looked exhausted, and maybe… Makoto could test the waters yet again.

“I was planning on taking the boys to the park later, so if you want to go home and get some sleep, I’ll keep watching them for a while. I’m sure they’d have fun.” He offered. Haru seriously looked like he needed it and… “You’re more than welcome to stay here while I go out if something is bothering you at home.”

Haru stared at Makoto’s face again, taking in each detail. “What’s with you?” His tone was accusatory, but Makoto wasn’t sure why. Weren’t people usually grateful when someone offered to do them a favor?

“What do you mean?” Makoto raised an eyebrow. He’d long since forgotten about the coffee. More important things had come up in the conversation.

“I barely know you and you offer to take care of my kids, offer to let me stay at your apartment without as much as second thought. What if I’m a murder? I could hurt you or the people you love.” Haru ranted on for a moment, suddenly erupting in a quiet rage.

“I just… before when I saw how you sent Rei in alone on that first day, I thought you were an awful parent. You didn’t make a fuss when my son broke his glasses and I honestly wondered why you even bothered.” Makoto felt a pang of anxiety run through him. He wasn’t doing himself any favors. “But yesterday at the aquarium, I realized that you’re an amazing dad. You knew just how to make Rei feel good about his drawing, and when the ‘incident’ happened,” he took a deep breath, trying to pick the best way to phrase his astonishment. “The way that you held onto him… and what you said about him getting taken away. I’ve had people taken away from me, and you love your kids. I don’t want to see that happen to anyone else.”

That was like Makoto baring some of his deepest wound. What were the chances that Haru would just get up and leave? Apparently very small. Haru’s seething anger seemed to have completely subsided while the man spoke. Haru just sighed in response. “I want to wake them up and let them know that we’re going to spend some time here as well.”

Oh, fuck it. “Can I ask you something?” Makoto stopped Haru as he stood from his chair. “Who were you arguing with last night?” He stopped dead in his tracks, staring daggers across the table.

“Their mother,” was all he said. Haru didn’t skip a beat, going over to gently shake his children awake. Makoto got up to leave the room and give them a moment of privacy, but he lingered at the edge of the hallway to watch. Rin and Rei both hugged him and he… smiled? It was different than just a normal smile though, like everything else had fallen away; his anger, tiredness, sadness, leaving behind only the unconditional love that he had for his kids.

Makoto’s heart skipped a beat, but he ignored it. He’d long since passed the time in his life for feelings like that, especially over someone he barely knew. His room was a bit of a mess, and if Haru was going to be sleeping there, he needed to make sure that he cleaned up a bit. Though, realistically, there was no harm in him lying down on his bed for just a minute. He was only going to rest his eyes and then he’d be back up and getting ready to go have fun in the park.

Of course, that didn’t happen. Makoto’s small break turned into a few hours long nap. What he hadn’t expected was to wake up with someone in the bed next to him. With the large comforter wrapped around the two of them, their feet all knotted together, the two of them had slept in Makoto’s bed.

Upon that realization, Makoto only mildly melted down. He hadn’t slept in a bed with someone, other than his kids, in well over four years. Haru was lucky that he didn’t just kick him out of the bed from the shock. He slowly unwound himself from the tangle of feet and slipped out into the living room, closing the bedroom door quietly behind him.

At some point while the two parents slept, the kids had gotten up and were quietly watching TV. They almost didn’t even notice that Makoto walked into the room. Checking the clock on the cable box, he realized that it was nearly lunch time. Before he announced their trip to the park, he wanted to feed them and ask Sousuke to come over and help him keep an eye on them all.

“Just for a little while. I’m doing this guy a favor and I want to make sure that they’ll all be safe. Please, you know I wouldn’t be asking you this if it wasn’t important.” Makoto had to practically beg him on the phone.

An exasperated sigh later and Sousuke said that he was on his way. Makoto heated up the leftover pizza from the previous two nights for their lunch. After they’d finished and they were preparing to head to the park, Makoto realized that Rin and Rei were both still dressed in the previous day’s clothes. The responsible adult in him decided to rummage through his sons’ clothes and pick out something that would likely fit them. It was just for the sake of cleanliness.

As soon as Makoto left the boys alone to get changed, a loud knock sounded on the door. He jumped a little and tried not to shush Sousuke as he came inside. Sousuke always dressed super casual on the weekends, like black tracksuit and some loafers. It was almost embarrassing to Makoto.

“What’s your deal? Everyone’s awake.” Sousuke raised a dark eyebrow at him. Now came the serious topic. Should Makoto give up that there was someone sleeping over, or keep Sousuke in the dark? What would he even think about it? Probably something vile. He was a little twisted, after all.

“Yeah, right.” Makoto snuck back into his room to throw on a new outfit, hoping that Haru wouldn’t wake up while he was partially naked. Before he’d even realized it, the brunette had taken a seat on the edge of the bed to observe his guest.

He looked different asleep. Like all the weights of the world that hung around his shoulders slipped down onto the dusty ground and left him free. Free of pain, sadness, it was like he recaptured the serenity he had when he spoke to his kids. His eyelashes were even the same jet black as his hair, long and thick. He was kind of—

Sousuke casually tossed the door open and scared the hell out of Makoto. The secret was out. He flew up off the bed like a bat out of hell and practically tossed Sousuke out of the room before he could ask a million questions or wake Haru up from his much needed rest.

“I can’t believe you had sex with him and now you’re watching his kids! Are you two fucking married now? It’s been two whole days, Makoto.” Sousuke was getting a little condescending.

“We didn’t have sex, and ix-nay the s-e-x talk and the f-word in front of the kids.” He scolded the older man. “There was a small near-accident at the aquarium yesterday, so I offered to watch his kids so he could relax. Then one thing led to another and the kids stayed the night, so he showed up here earlier looking like a mess, so I offered to let him sleep in my bed while I took the kids to the park.” He conveniently left the detail about sleeping in the bed with him out.

“Okay, but now I have to ask you.” Sousuke paused. “Why do you care?”

That hit Makoto in the chest like a ton of bricks, but only because he knew the answer. He supposed that, on some level, he didn’t want to have to reflect that back onto himself. It just hurt too much.

“Because we’re the same.” He took a shuddery breath. “Both of our wives left us.”

Sousuke stared intently into his eyes, like he was searching for some grain of truth that wasn’t there. He didn’t know about what had really happened five years ago. Only the father and eldest son knew the real story, and all Makoto knew was that he never wanted to think about it again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh man, look forward to rintori/reigisa play date in the park for the next chapter. I mean, what could possibly go wrong? 
> 
> Like, so many things. Just get ready. I'm a bad person lmao


	6. Rainbow Dust and Daddy Dogpiles

Makoto sat in the car with Nagisa and Rei, slowly driving to the park. Sousuke had given him hell over the man sleeping in his bed, even after he’d promised that nothing had happened. It had been a lie. They’d slept in his bed, after all. Maybe Makoto was overthinking it. Nothing had really happened. They slept. That was it.

Sousuke had offered to drive Rin and Aiichirou together, since they were both in his class and he didn’t want to freak either of Haru’s sons out. Makoto was sure that Nagisa hadn’t stopped blathering on about his favorite spots in the park to play, even going so far as to bring his chalk so they could all draw on the sidewalk together.

“You’ll love it, Reirei! The sidewalk by the swings is really big and there’s a basketball court we can draw on if there’s no one on it!” Thankfully, Rei still seemed excited. No matter how over the top Nagisa became, Rei didn’t seem to tire of him. That’d happened before once and it wasn’t pretty.

“I’m sure it’ll be great, Nagisa. I’ll show you how to draw butterflies.” The other boy perked up a little. Turning into the parking lot, Makoto picked a spot near where Sousuke had already parked. The afternoon air was a little muggy, but a cool breeze seemed to help Makoto stay dry.

The park itself was more than modest for the small town. There was an entire jungle gym and a fake castle for them to run around on, including numerous loopy slides. There were about as many people there as Makoto figured for one in the afternoon on a Saturday.

Letting Rei and Nagisa go with the chalk, Makoto walked over to the picnic table that Sousuke had claimed. It was in the middle of a soft patch of grass and made it so that they could survey the entire park. It wouldn’t guarantee that no accidents would happen, but the spot would lessen the chances. “So tell me about this guy some more.”

Makoto rolled his neck and stifled a sigh. “There’s nothing to tell, Sousuke. All I know is that his ex has been hanging around harassing him about their kids.” Sousuke was going to pry until he was satisfied.

“Okay but why was he sleeping in your bed then, and why were you staring at him like he was the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen?” He raised an eyebrow and smirked, like he already knew the answer.

“I was just sitting down to tie my shoe.” Makoto insisted. “You’re making something out of nothing, really. I’ve only known the guy for two days and I was only doing what anyone would do.”

“Oh really?” He shot back. “I only let some guy I knew for two days sleep over once and we see how that ended up. Now he won’t leave me alone.” Sousuke was referring to the nurse. He was a spunky guy a couple years younger than them named Momo.

“You have to admit that you did that to yourself.” Makoto shook his head. Although he’d never had one, he knew that one night stands could be dangerous, especially with coworkers.

“What can I say? When you got it, you got it.” Sousuke gloated. Makoto resisted the urge to make a snide comment about how all he had was two brothers fighting it out for him.

“As far as I can see, you’ve got it made for yourself.” That was about as snarky as he was willing to get with his friend.

“Hey, that’s cold, Tachibana. I know you’ve been on some hard times lately, but you should still stay positive. I’m sure there’s someone else out there for you, and they’ll be great with your kids too.” Once again, Sousuke still didn’t know the whole story. Makoto had been considering telling him the truth, but every time he went to, something happened. This time was no different.

Nagisa ran up to him, looking a little shocked. “Daddy, Rin and Ai are fighting someone.” Makoto’s expression fell and he rose from his seat at the table to run around the park and find them.

The four kids were in a nook under the castle, the one place that Makoto couldn’t see from the bench. Ai was on the ground crying, with Rei crouched down next to him. Rin, on the other hand, was brutally punching at a child that Makoto hadn’t seen before.

First things first, Makoto had to pull Rin away from the boy he was fighting. The man grabbed Rin by his shoulders and held him back. “What’s going on, why are you two fighting?” In that brief instant, the other little boy slipped by Makoto and was gone.

“I was protecting Ai. That kid pushed him down and started making fun of him for not having a mom.” Rin’s cheek was a little red. Looks like the other brat got a good punch in on him.

Makoto sighed, and he was glad they weren’t in school. “You did a good job, Rin. We’ll tell your dad that you got into a little fight. I promise I’ll handle it.” He released the boy’s shoulders and went over to his son, who was still curled up on the ground crying. Before he could open his mouth to say something, Rin slid right in next to Ai.

“Hey,” he pushed at Ai’s knee. “Don’t cry, Ai. I won’t let another kid do that to you, okay? I know how it is to not have a mom. She left when I was little and did bad things to daddy. So I’ll make sure that no one ever says anything like that to you again, okay?” Ai leaned up a bit, and he had clearly been struck in the face as well. Makoto tried to quell the anger that built up in his gut. Why the other kids had to be so cruel, he didn’t know.

Ai nodded and continued to sniffle as they headed out of the castle. Across the park, he noticed Nagisa clutched to Sousuke’s leg as he spoke with a woman. She looked really upset and then she turned to scream at her son. It looked like Sousuke had caught the boy and was getting him in trouble with his mother. At least there was some justice.

“Let’s go get the chalk and we can go draw all over the basketball court.” Makoto’s line of sight fell to where the kids had been at before. Walking over, he noticed all the half-drawn butterflies, a duck, and a shark. He took a seat on the warm blacktop and grabbed a bright green piece of chalk. Ai seemed to perk back up as Rin finished another shark and then started drawing a duck on its back.

Makoto spent that time drawing something a little different. Despite knowing very little about sea creatures, other than the Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin, Makoto still enjoyed whales. His was more of a cartoon, but it didn’t look out of place with the kid’s drawings. That was probably more of a jab at his own artistic abilities.

“How is that?” He asked the kids. Nagisa had traveled back over with Sousuke. Makoto nodded at the man, hoping that would be the last they would have to say about the tiff.

“Daddy your whale looks funny! It doesn’t even have any water coming out of the blowhole!” Nagisa grabbed a piece of blue chalk and proceeded to add a bunch of water to it.

“Nagisa, blowhole is a bad word!” Ai looked a little disturbed and Makoto tried not to laugh.

“It’s not really a bad word.” Makoto told him. “There are some that are kind of like that though.” He wasn’t sure where on earth Ai would’ve picked that up from though.

“Oh, sorry Naggy.” He blushed a little and continued scribbling in the beak of the duck he’d drawn. After filling up the better part of the basketball court, some guys with unnaturally color hair showed up and forced them to leave.

It was probably about time to get back to Haru anyways. Covered in rainbow-hued dust, the six of them drove back to the Makoto’s apartment. If he hadn’t known that they were at the park, it would’ve appeared like they’d gone out to a party.

It had been a day, even still. For the last few days, it seemed like talks of moms and wives had been everywhere. Sousuke must’ve been able to tell that Makoto was feeling a little vulnerable because he called him out to talk for a bit after sending the kids inside.

“Look, don’t do anything you’ll regret tomorrow.” He advised. “I know your kids are important, but don’t think that just because he understands you, that he’s right for you.”

Makoto laughed it off. “Sousuke, we were both formerly married men. I don’t think that things will be like that between us.”

He narrowed his eyes. “Stranger things have happened, Makoto. Especially if you’re feeling emotionally unstable.”

Makoto sighed and tried not to ignore Sousuke’s warnings. “I understand. I’ll take your word for it.” It wasn’t like he was looking for a relationship, and Haru didn’t exactly seem like he was open for that either.

Sousuke clapped him on the shoulder and headed back towards his car. “I’ve got some homework to grade, but if you need anything, call me. I’ve got your back, Makoto.”

The brunette nodded. “Thanks, Sousuke.” Seeing his friend off with a wave, he entered the apartment. The boys looked exhausted and had plopped down in front of the TV to watch more cartoons. Makoto headed to the back to check on Haru.

Makoto didn’t flip the lights on, but the gentle glow of dusk coming in through the window was enough to see. Haru had rolled himself all up into a bundle in the middle of the bed and was lying with his arm lolled off the side. Without really thinking about it, Makoto found himself on the edge of the mattress watching the man sleep. The only difference was this time he was actually awake.

Before Makoto could brace himself, Haruka grabbed the man’s arm and pulled him down onto the mattress with him. “H-Haru!” Makoto yelped. The kids must’ve heard the shout because the clatter of footsteps headed this way, and suddenly there was a dogpile on the bed.

Wrestling against Haru’s iron grip, he groaned when Nagisa kneed him in the kidney. Makoto gave in, and just let them writhe around and fight until they got tuckered out. The father didn’t even realize what had happened until everyone had stopped moving.

Lifting his head up, all the kids had fallen asleep sprawled all over the two of them and Haru was watching him closely. “Hi.”

“Really?” Makoto scoffed. “Is that all you have to say?” Makoto could feel the bruise rising on his back.

Haru simply blinked at him. “I used your phone earlier and we can’t leave yet. Gou is still at the house and she refuses leave.” Makoto thought back to what Rin had told Ai about how their mom had done ‘bad things’ to their father.

“You should go back.” Makoto told him. Haru’s blank expression faltered a little. “For clothes and toothbrushes and things like that. I’ll let you stay for a few days, but our sons don’t wear the same size.”

Haru nodded. “We should trade work schedules. I can watch the kids during nights if you need a break.” A… break? Makoto hadn’t taken a break in the better part of five years.

“I’m a teacher, so I work Monday through Friday.” He told Haru.

“I work Sundays through Thursdays usually. They called me in to work for the field trip yesterday, so I have tomorrow off. I’ll go then and get things for everyone.”

“Then it’s a sleepover. I’m sure the boys will be excited.” A small grin played at the corners of Makoto’s mouth.

The kids weren’t the only ones that were excited.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the positive feedback on this has been overwhelming and it has basically motivated me to work on this fic instead of like the three others that I'm doing. Thanks so much for all your comments and kudos, they mean a lot to me. <3


	7. Family Jewels and Family Trees

The rest of the evening passed without incident, relatively speaking. The red marks on Rin and Ai’s faces had swollen up into little purple and blue knots, but it was nothing that a few days wouldn’t heal and they were no worse for the wear. Rin claimed that he wore the bruise proudly and that if it was for sticking up for his friend, he’d do it again.

Makoto just shook his head as he closed the bedroom door. In light of the space issue, he’d offered to sleep on the couch and let the other father and sons sleep in his bedroom. It wasn’t a great arrangement, he realized, but in the light of the circumstances, it was all Makoto could offer Haru.

The next morning was met with a crick in his neck and a sore back. The couch was more or less comfortable, but not nearly long enough for Makoto’s taller than average body. Groaning a little, he stretched out his back muscles as he went to the bathroom, more than a little confused to hear the shower running already. Peeking into the bedroom, Makoto saw the two little boys curled up alone together. It was obviously Haru in the bathroom.

At this point in time, the best thing that he could think to do was make breakfast and carry on like it was a normal Sunday morning. Slogging back down the hallway, he was tempted to take the easy way out and just make five bowls of cereal. The only problem with that was Makoto wanted to be a gracious host, and there wasn’t enough milk anyway.

Makoto did it up big, getting out all the pots and pans to make eggs, bacon, pancakes, and some oatmeal for Ai. By the time the table was all set, Ai had woken up Nagisa and dragged him into the room. “Don’t start eating yet,” he warned them. “I’m going to go get our guests.”

The air was laced with moisture from the humidity coming from the bathroom. Without really thinking about it, Makoto slung the door to the bathroom open. He’d done it a thousand times to check on his sons, so how would this time be any different?

Realizing his error, Makoto stood there like an idiot. Haru, who was normally blasé, looked a bit shocked as he stood there dripping wet, with nary but a towel covering the family jewels.

“Uh, I just, uh…” Makoto stammered, blushing bright red all the way up to his ears. “Breakfast is ready!” He took a quick step back, caught his foot on what appeared to be Haru’s underwear, and landed hard on his back. It was a little difficult for him to get a breath in, and the stars dancing around the edge of his vision prevented him from seeing Haru drop the towel and kneel down next to him.

“Are you alright? What the hell were you thinking just barging in here like that?” He scolded. Makoto was a little bit dazed, but when the water started to drip out of Haru’s hair onto his face, he became painfully aware of the situation.

Makoto flew up as fast as he could and escaped from the room without getting an eyeful. It took him a minute in the hallway before he could catch his breath and suppress his embarrassment. He’d be lucky if he could even look Haru in the eye after that.

All the man had to do now was wake up the other two kids and try not thinking about the fact that he’d nearly seen Haru naked. It was bad enough that he had the image of Haru’s muscles burned into the backs of his eyelids. Rin and Rei both came quietly into the kitchen, not completely awake. Makoto plated two eggs, bacon and pancakes for each of the boys and some oatmeal for Ai and Rei.

He ducked his head down when Haru came into the room, completely mortified by what had happened. Still, though, he made the man a plate before returning to the crowded table and beginning to eat. The conversation this early was less than scintillating. All the children were half-awake and the adults were too embarrassed by what had happened to speak.

However, once the meal concluded, Haru made a move. “Makoto, I want to ask you something.”

Makoto’s pulse immediately sped. This question could not possibly be anything good. “S-sure, Haru. What is it?”

“Can you ask your friend to babysit and come back to the house with me?” His voice came out a little brittle. Makoto had been avoiding looking at Haru, but he nodded.

“I can’t promise that Sousuke will want to, but I’ll call and ask.” Makoto offered. His phone was stuck in his pocket.

After ringing for a few seconds, a groggy voice answered. “Tachibana, you better have a damn good reason for calling me at nine in the morning on a Sunday.”

Makoto laughed nervously. “Okay well, you see, Sousuke, I need a favor.”

“Dude, I’m not watching the kids so you can go out on a date.” He replied immediately.

Makoto choked on nothing, alarming Haru a little. “Sousuke! It’s not like that! I just need you to keep an eye on the kids for two hours, tops.”

The line stayed quiet for a moment before Sousuke sighed. “Damn it, Makoto. What am I going to do with you? Give me an hour.”

“Right, thanks Sousuke.” Makoto sat the phone back onto the table. “He’ll be here around ten and then we can go get clothes and things for the kids.”

Haru nodded, not even realizing that he and Makoto had looked at each other straight on. “Is it because of… her that you want me to go with you?” Makoto asked.

Haru’s eyes narrowed a bit. “I just wanted you to help me move things. You’re big and probably strong. That means we can get more stuff for them.”

Somehow, Makoto didn’t believe him. Of course, Makoto would be a big help with moving things, but some part of him wanted Haru to need his help with something less superficial.

After waiting around for an almost mind-numbing amount of time, a knock boomed loudly in the apartment. Before anyone could stop him, Nagisa ran straight over to the door. “Sou-sou!” The boy yelled.

“Nagisa,” the man pouted, leaning down to scoop Nagisa up. “We talked about stranger danger. You shouldn’t just open the door without your dad.”

“But you’re not a stranger, Sou-sou! You’re daddy’s best friend!” Nagisa shouted. Makoto just shook his head and pulled his jacket up off the back of a chair.

“Thanks for this Sousuke. I’ll make it up to you later.” Makoto promised, not noticing the edged look he was giving Haru.

“Sure.” Sousuke replied succinctly. “I’ve got the boys, just hurry back. I don’t have all day.” Makoto idly wondered why he was making such a big deal about it since they usually hung out on the weekends, but it was quickly interrupted by Haru heading out the door.

Makoto suppressed a yelp and headed out after him. “Are we taking your car or mine?”

Haru didn’t answer, he just headed towards a silver minivan. Makoto took that as his cue to get in. It wasn’t as if he knew where they were going anyway. The inside of the van smelled a little like crayons and the beige ceiling was stained with what looked like grape juice. Makoto’s car was the same.

At this point, Makoto was practically dying to ask him a billion questions, but he didn’t. In his own experience, those memories tended to be painful and tinged with anguish. This made the ride to Haru’s house a little quiet.

Makoto was in awe as they pulled into the drive of the giant home. It was easily twice the size of any home that he’d ever seen. “It belonged to my parents. Don’t get excited.” Haru said.

Still, it was hard not to. The interior of the home was classic, paper doors, hardwood floors, it was amazing. Haru led them up the stairs to his boy’s rooms. Makoto was a little jealous of it all. He’d tried so hard to provide for his own, but no matter what, it wouldn’t be able to match the sheer enormity of what Haru had given his.

Haru showed him to a dresser in Rei’s room. They clearly hadn’t lived there for that long. None of the walls were decorated or painted and there were no toys littering the floor. Makoto made quick work of pulling all the clothing out of the dresser and putting it into a suitcase that Haru had dragged out of the closet.

With all that he pulled out, the father couldn’t help but notice the few stuffed animals and a story book tucked gently into the pillows on the bed. Makoto piled them in on top of Rei’s clothes and zipped up the purple suitcase. That was when he heard a door slam open and a woman’s voice downstairs.

Makoto drug the suitcase out of the room and stopped on the stairwell. He was met with maroon hair pulled back into a tight bun, red eyes alight with confusion. “Who are you?”

Makoto was wholly speechless. He hadn’t expected to encounter her. It was lucky that Haru slipped back out of the room and stepped between them. “Get out.” He said simply.

“What are you doing here?” She asked, eyes skimming down to the suitcases. “Are you moving out?”

“Yes.” Haru spat. Makoto kind of hoped he was lying. As much as he enjoyed the company, the apartment was not nearly sizeable enough to support a family of six. Haru picked up the suitcases that he’d packed and began to pound down the stairs like it was nothing. Makoto followed, a little lost.

“Where are the kids?” She asked. “I knew you were irresponsible. How could you leave our children alone with… a babysitter?”

“He’s not a babysitter, he’s my friend.” Makoto interjected before he could stop himself.

“And who are you?” With each passing moment, the woman seemed to grow even more livid. This was going to get ugly, Makoto could feel it.

“He’s my partner.” Haru stopped at the bottom step, keeping a few feet of distance between the divorcees. Makoto froze. What had he just said?

Her jaw dropped. “So what, are you gay now?” That was certainly the next question to ask, Makoto thought.

“Not gay, bi. I always was.” Haru broke the tension and moved towards the door. As she lifted her hand, Makoto dropped the suitcase and slipped over to catch it.

“Don’t.” It was all Makoto could do. “You can say what you want to, but don’t try to hit him.” His heart was aching.

Instead, her hand reared back into a hard slap against Makoto’s cheek. “Don’t you dare touch me.” Makoto flinched back and released his grip. All at once, things had gone wrong. Haru stared, eyes wide, and then pulled the door open and stepped out like he hadn’t seen a thing. Makoto grabbed Rei’s suitcase and followed, stepping past the desperate mother.

His face stung as he tossed the suitcase into the backseat and climbed in next to Haru. “Sorry,” was all he said. Haru backed out of the drive as she stood in the door, watching the two of them leave.

A few minutes down the road, Haru pulled off into an empty parking lot and dropped his head down to the wheel. Makoto was even more confused until he heard the quiet sniffling of the man and saw the small drops falling onto his pants.

“Haru, are you okay?” Makoto unbuckled his seatbelt and leaned across the divider, placing his hand on Haru’s shoulder.

His body turned and his head fell into Makoto’s chest. “I didn’t want you to see that.” His voice was nasally and wavy.

“I don’t think any differently of you, Haru. You were just trying to help your kids.” Makoto rubbed a circle on his back, feeling a bit like he was coddling Ai.

Haru pulled back and looked up into Makoto’s eyes. “Sorry that she slapped you.”

Makoto just flashed back to what Rin had said. “If it was for a friend, I would do it again.” Haru’s face softened around the edges a bit and he pulled back.

“We need to get back to the kids.” Haru sniffled.

“Yeah,” Makoto agreed. “We do.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tbh, I'm not even sorry for what happened in this chapter. I've literally had to scale back the gay like 5 times because I don't want to rush things. Forgive me, mother.


	8. Silver Linings and Story Books (and Sousuke's Date)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a lot of fun with this chapter and I even included a little bonus at the end! I say little, it ended up being like a third of the chapter lol.
> 
> I also updated the tags for the story to make them more accurately reflect what's going on atm? They'll likely change again oops.

When Makoto and Haru arrived back at the apartment, luggage in tow, he was a bit surprised to see a familiar car parked next to Sousuke’s. The little white thing belonged to the notorious Mikoshiba brothers, but Makoto was a little worried to see which one Sousuke had chosen. Lifting up a purple suitcase and taking one that Haru had packed, the two of them hefted the luggage up to the room.

Makoto kicked at the bottom of the door in a rough attempt at knocking. A torrent of giggly shouting was heard and then the person that Makoto least expected opened the door: Momotarou Mikoshiba, school nurse. The father wasn’t terribly familiar with the spunky redhead other than what he’d heard from Sousuke. He’d only been to the nurse’s office a couple times and it was only for minor things.

“Ah, the father returns!” Momo shouted, tossing the door open the rest of the way. “Make that fathers! Welcome back, Dad!”

Makoto gave a half-hearted grin at being called ‘Dad’ by the younger man, but was more than thrilled to see his children standing behind him. Ai and Rei were pressed into the back of Momo’s legs with blue marker staining their hands. When they moved out of the way to go inside, Makoto realized that Sousuke was sitting on the floor between Nagisa and Rin, doodling a bunch of sea creatures with them.

“Did you guys have fun while we were gone?” Makoto asked, setting the suitcases down near the table. Haru followed suit and leaned down to see the drawing that Rei quietly presented him. Of course, it was a dolphin with a silver stomach. Who would’ve guessed?

“We did, Daddy!” Nagisa held a picture of a penguin up and Rin tossed up a picture of a shark and a toothy grin. “I’ve been having lots of fun with Uncle Sousou and Momo!” It warmed his heart to see how much fun that Ai and Nagisa were having, and he was a bit thankful for it. Up until then, they’d been on a real hiatus of activity. It seemed like it had all come out of nowhere.

In just four days, Makoto had accumulated a roommate, like his wishes had been heard and granted. “I guess I should tell you that Rin and Rei will be staying with us for a little while.” Nagisa beamed immediately and threw his drawing down to tackle Rin.

“Yay! Forever sleepover!” The blonde kid was ecstatic, but Rin was clearly not having Nagisa’s roughhousing.

Ai grabbed Makoto’s hand. “Are they really?” His watery blue-green eyes stared up at his father’s green ones.

“Just for a little while, buddy.” Makoto promised, although who really knew. There were a lot of extenuating circumstances surrounding the entire situation and Makoto would offer Haru and his kids a room for as long as they needed.

Ai nodded and ran back over to attempt to quell Nagisa. In the meantime, Sousuke had gotten off the floor and approached him. “Did everything go alright, Tachibana. Your cheek is a little red.” One of his black eyebrows was raised in a questioning concern.

Makoto kind of shrugged in reply. His friend already disapproved of what he was doing, so to tell him that he’d been hit would probably cause him to put his foot down and Makoto would have to give in. “I fell asleep with my face against the window and Haru hit a bump. It’s a little embarrassing.” He lied. From behind Sousuke, Haru gave him a look, but didn’t press it.

“Jeez, Makoto. I’m going to have to start keeping a closer eye on you. What am I going to do with the kids if something happens to you?” Sousuke joked, shaking his head, but Ai had clearly heard him. Makoto didn’t say anything in reply, but quickly went to where Ai was standing. The little boy with the light brown hair was gazing into nowhere, a million miles away.

The father took his son’s hand and led him out of the room so that they would be out of earshot of the rest of the gang. Makoto didn’t see Haru’s eyes follow his back as they walked down the hall.

Closing the door, Makoto kneeled and pulled Ai into a tight hug. “Don’t worry about what Sousuke said, Ai. Nothing is going to happen to me, I promise. I told you that I’d never leave you and I meant it.”

A few tears had made shimmery trails down Aiichiro’s face. “I know, Daddy, but after Mommy, and I just…”

“I know, Ai, I know.” He felt his chest tighten. “I just want to help Rin and Rei and Haru out. They lost their mom too and I want you to have some friends besides just Naggy.”

Ai sniffled and reached up to wipe the tears off, brushing his hand across the little beauty spot under the corner of his right eye. “R-really? I didn’t know that.” He seemed to be perking back up a little.

“Yep, we’re all the same, and I bet that Rin wants to be your friend a lot.” Makoto encouraged him, pecking a little kiss at the bruise on his cheek. “It looks like he’ll keep the bullies off your back too. You should give him a chance. Just look how Nagisa is with Rei. I’m sure you’ll be best friends in no time.”

There was a little hesitation in Ai’s face, but he nodded anyways. “Thanks Daddy. I love you.” He wrapped his thin arms around his father’s neck.

“I love you more.” The father promised his son. “Why don’t you go back out and play. I’ll be out in a sec.”

Ai nodded, wiped his eyes one more time, and turned towards the living room to join the others. Makoto just wanted to take a second to grab something out of the nightstand to give Haru. It was a bit of an afterthought, and he’d probably have to get more made later.

Makoto dropped it into his pocket and followed Ai’s footsteps. Momo and Sousuke were standing near the door, still playing with Nagisa. “Daddy, Sousou told me that he and Momo are going on a d-a-t-e! Is that why Rin and Rei are staying with us? Is their dad going to be our mommy?”

Suddenly all the conversation in the room ceased and all eyes were on Nagisa. Makoto opened his mouth to say something, but there were no words, at least not for him. Haru leaned down to Nagisa and whispered something that Makoto didn’t make out, but Nagisa laughed again and the tension in the room eased.

Sousuke cleared his throat. “Anyways, like the munchkin said, we’ve got a date.”

Amongst other shocks that Makoto had just gotten, he was a little intrigued as to why Sousuke was actually going on a date and had even invited Momo over to help watch the kids. “What made you change your mind?” He asked.

“I heard what you said about the ‘night-stand’, Tachibana.” He shrugged. “I figured it would make me a better friend if I let you teach me a thing or two.” Sousuke reached out and put his arm around Momo’s neck.

“I owe you a lot, Makoto!” Momo shouted, reaching out to shake his hand. “Now I can rub it in Sei’s face.”

Makoto gave another half-smile. He wasn’t exactly sure what made Sousuke pick Momo over his older, at least somewhat more mature brother, but as long as Sousuke was happy, he wouldn’t question it. “Don’t worry about it, Momo. Sousuke’s been a free man for too long. It might do him some good to be a little domesticated.” He teased.

Sousuke just pouted a bit, giving Makoto a blank stare. “It’s not too late to call off the date. Don’t push your luck, you two.”

Momo’s eyebrows went up and he grabbed Sousuke’s hand. “No! Sou, please! Don’t call the date off, I really wanted this!”

If Nagisa hadn’t been wrapped around Sousuke’s leg, Momo probably would’ve hopped into Sousuke’s arms like a dejected princess. “Momo, I was just messing with you to get under Makoto’s skin.” He sighed.

The redhead still whined for a good ten seconds after that. “Maybe you two should get going before I ruin everything.” Makoto shook his head.

“Yeah, we are. See you tomorrow, Tachibana.” He nodded, pried Nagisa off his leg, and bid them farewell. Once that had passed, Makoto turned back to the mess the kids had made while the fathers been out.

“Boys, why don’t you go clean up and I’ll start dinner.” He suggested. “Haru, you can take the suitcases into the backroom and unpack them if you need to. I’ll help you move them.”

Makoto stepped past Haru and picked up the two suitcases he had before and hefted them into the backroom. Setting them lightly down near the dresser, he pulled open the drawers and began to remove his own clothes. He could simply relocate them to the closet and let Haru use this for him and his kids.

“You don’t have to do that.” Haru told him, unzipping his one of the suitcases.

Makoto nodded. “Yes I do. I want you all to be comfortable here, and having to pull clothes out of a suitcase every morning doesn’t really lend itself to a sense of security.” He had a good point. Rin and Rei, as well as Nagisa and Ai, really could use a bit of stability and a sense of home. While the apartment wasn’t necessarily ideal, it was better than staying in a hotel.

“What will you do with your clothes then? Where are you going to sleep? That couch is too small for you.” Haru pointed out, bitterly filling the dresser with his clothing and then moving on to the next suitcase.

“It’ll be fine. I was thinking about buying an air mattress and setting it up in the other bedroom. I really wanted to let them have their own bedrooms, but it looks like we’ll be more cramped up for a while.” Makoto said, before realizing how it sounded. “Not that I regret offering you a place to stay. Everyone deserves their best chance and if I can help you out, especially with your kids, I’d be more than happy.”

Haru didn’t reply, but he was a little dumbstruck when he opened the violet suitcase that held Rei’s things. “Did you put this in here?” He held up a large brown book with the words ‘Once Upon a Time’ embroidered into the cover.

“Oh yeah, there are some stuffed animals in there too.” Makoto pointed to a part of a whale stuffed under some shirts. “It was sitting on the middle of the bed so I figured it must’ve been important and I grabbed it.”

Haru’s jaw clenched. “She took this when she left and refused to give it back. She said it was so she could put her kids to bed.”

Makoto nodded. “Is it really that important? I have dozens of story books tucked all over the place for Nagisa and Ai.” Haru’s expression was just as hard to read as always, but there was definitely a certain sadness lurking beneath those sea blue eyes; like a storm raged gently beneath the azure waves.

“I read to Rin and Rei out of this every night when they were little. It’s nearly impossible to get them to sleep without it.” His Adam’s apple quivered a bit as he ran his fingers over the lettering on the cover.

Makoto felt himself slip into a small grin. “I’m glad that I could get it back for you then. Oh,” he reached into his pocket while he was thinking about it. “I also wanted to give you this.”

He held the silver out to Haru, dropping it into his palm. “Is this a key?”

The brunet nodded. “I figured you would need one since our hours are weird.” Another smile pulled at the sides of his mouth. “And I’ll bring the boys home tomorrow after school, so don’t worry about picking them up. I might need you to go shopping though, if it isn’t too much trouble. I needed to go over the weekend and pick some things up, but that obviously didn’t happen.”

Haru fingered the key for a moment and then balled it up in his fist. “I can do that. Make me a list.”

Makoto was still smiling. Even though there was suddenly twice the number of people in the small apartment, having another hand around would make literally everything easier. If things went well and Haru stayed, that would halve the rent and then…

Wait, if Haru stayed? Was that even a feasible outcome? Makoto idly wondered as he stood from the floor and carried his clothes into the closet.

 

**BONUS SOUMOMO DATE PART BECAUSE I REALLY LOVE SOUMOMO. I’M SORRY. NO ONE ASKED FOR THIS.**

Sousuke wasn’t exactly sure how he expected this whole thing to go. On Makoto’s urging, he decided to go with the younger brother. He knew that both the Mikoshiba brothers pined after him, but Seijuurou was a little older than him, bigger than him, and a bit intimidating. Momotarou, on the other hand, was a couple years younger than him, smaller than him, and anything but intimidating. The only part of intimidating that he found Momo useful for was dating.

The date he’d planned was super casual, which was probably important since the only interaction they’d had up to that point was meeting at the beginning of the year. Momo had just been hired on and then he and Sousuke were going at it in the Nurse’s office. Looking back on it, he realized that it was completely unprofessional and a little gross.

This time, they were just going out to a fast food place and then Sousuke was going to take him back home and that would be it. They had driven separately to Momo’s and Sei’s apartment to drop off the car, but now they were headed back out.

“Did you tell your friend about what happened, Sousuke?” Momo asked, pointing to a bug that was holding onto the hood for dear life.

The man couldn’t really lie. In not so many words, Sousuke had let on that he blabbed. “I did. He’s pretty much the only person I talk to outside of school. Tachibana’s a bit of a stickler, but he’s good guy. I’m sure you would be great friends.”

Momo smirked. “I’ve seen him a few times in my office with his kids, but we didn’t really talk. If you think he’s nice, he must be great though.” What made him say that?

Sousuke didn’t press it any longer. “He’s something.”

He was getting a little nervous now that it was quiet in the car. The older man hadn’t been on a date in quite a number of years. Sousuke considered crossing the line with Makoto before, but he was fairly certain that road was as straight as an arrow. However, in the last few days, he couldn’t help but wonder if his instincts were correct.

By the time he parked outside the fast-food joint, his hands were nearly shaking. Momo had stayed quiet, just staring out the window and letting the sun catch the orange of his hair and turn into a tangerine dream. Sousuke shook his head and tried to snap out of it. It was just a dumb first date.

He held the door open for his date, prompting a big grin and a thank you that took the bite out him. If he was trying to be aloof, he was having a hard time at this point. The teenage girl working the register greeted them cheerily and took their orders. Sousuke had gotten the largest meal they offered, while Momo decided to go with the chicken nuggets. Honestly, Sousuke still wasn’t sure what he expected.

The older man paid for the food for his date, insistently so. He was failing at calming himself down. The last date Sousuke had gone on ended with a bad case of the hots and a drink in his face. He’d had his heart ripped out and it was a long process to get him to the point where he could let Makoto convince him to go on a date. If this date went that way, he’d probably just give up and mooch of Makoto’s own family forever.

As he slid into the booth across from Momo, he thought of a good icebreaker question. “What made you want to be a school nurse?” Totally innocent.

Momo pursed his lips in thought. “I’m not really sure. I just knew that I wanted to work with kids! They’re so cute and I just like playing with them. I hope to have some of my own one day!” His teeth were blisteringly white and his smile looked like it would melt Sousuke into a puddle if it didn’t turn down. “Why did you become a teacher?” The orange-headed man replied.

Sousuke knew exactly why, but should he divulge the story or play it cool? “I had a big family growing up and I always loved playing with my younger siblings. When I got older, it was just the natural choice. It’s one of the reasons I like hanging out with Makoto so much. His kids are something else for sure.” Having Nagisa call him his uncle just warmed his heart.

“I bet they are, Uncle Sousou.” Momo laughed, tossing an entire nugget into his mouth at once. “They seem like really good kids, but that little blonde one is a devil in disguise. He’s in my office pretty regularly.”

Sousuke shook his head. “He’s just a little hyper. Once he gets older, he’ll calm down. My brother was like that too.”

Momo nodded thoughtfully and it became silent again as they ate. Sousuke just stole glances at Momo, taking in his tan skin, pink lips, the point of his jaw as it met his ear. He was getting in deep, and he considered just letting himself drown.

Momo caught Sousuke’s aquamarine gaze studying his features and, when a small blush crept onto his date’s cheeks, Sousuke had to physically stop himself from choking on the French fry in his mouth.

After finishing, and avoiding eye contact, they got back into Sousuke’s car and returned to Mikoshiba apartment. Like the gentleman that he hoped he was, Sousuke walked Momo up to the porch.

“I had fun, even though it was just fast food.” Momo said quickly. His hesitant brown eyes met Sousuke’s and he felt fingers gently intermingle with his own. Before he could reply, Momo had stood up on his tiptoes to kiss Sousuke, his eyes firmly shut.

Sousuke tried to resist, but he couldn’t any longer. He clutched Momo’s hand tightly in his own and deepened the kiss. It reminded him of that first day that they had met, hot and fast, though this time went no farther than just that simple intimate gesture. Once they broke for air, Sousuke realized that his heart was practically beating out of his chest.

“I’ll call you tomorrow.” Sousuke promised.

And he did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so the positive feedback on this has been absolutely overwhelming! I'm super glad that you all like it (you really like it).
> 
> Also there was totally a reference to Once Upon A Time in this chapter. I just finished re-watching the show and I couldn't resist!
> 
> I hope you loved the Soumomo part. I know it isn't everyone's cup of tea, I just love it a lot and I'm not sorry. Thanks for reading. See you soon! ;)) <3


	9. Air Mattresses and Math Problems

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is from Haru's PoV so you're not confused!

****Haru left the apartment a few minutes earlier than normal, shopping list tucked firmly into his pocket. He’d hugged his children goodbye, waking them up a bit before he left. For the first time in since he’d gotten this job, Haru wouldn’t be running in at the very last second to swipe his time card. As a matter of fact, the one thing he hadn’t considered was that he was marginally closer to the aquarium at the apartment than he was at his home clear on the other side of town.

Haru arrived at work nearly twenty minutes early. He hated getting anywhere unnecessarily early. As far as he was concerned, being the first person to show up at an event was always awful because everyone felt the need to talk him. Even his coworkers could be a bit overly social, but they were learning that he needed his space. It was appreciated.

Once the clocked ticked over to five minutes before eight, he crept out of the minivan and headed towards the mirror doors. Inside the aquarium was always calming. Haru liked being near the water, even if he couldn’t physically get into it. As much as he’d loved swimming once upon a time, it just carried the memory of interrupted dreams and halted ambition.

In the backroom, where Rin had nearly fallen into the shark tank just days ago, Haru went about the usual routine. His particular specialty was in formulating the diets for the creatures that they cared for so meticulously. The creatures all slipped up to the top of the tank to get whatever he was dropping in for them.

He hadn’t passed on his affinity for dolphins on purpose, but Rei seemed to have picked up on it and liked to draw them for his father. Rin, on the other hand, favored sharks for whatever reason. He wondered idly if it had something to do with protection, like if he could become a shark, he’d be able to protect everyone.

This thought prompted him to lean back against the wall and take a breather. Things had been wrong for a quite a long time. The only instance that he could recall of something positive happening was that first day that he met Makoto. The teacher handled the incident with the glasses much better than Rei’s previous teacher would have. However, that was a school in a city. The teachers barely had time to keep up with their crowded classrooms.

The lax attitude of the country town seemed to be just right, as far as he was concerned. The only real wrinkle in his attempt at a fresh start was Her. The stressed out father had been careful not to leave any trace behind when they fled from Tokyo. He should’ve known that she’d find them here, as much as he wanted to ignore it.

Court cases and custody battles had been fierce. The only testimony that truly ruled in his favor was the fact that his sons didn’t want to be with her any longer. She left first, not him. He just didn’t speak of her in front of them. It was unnecessary. They knew what had happened and he refused to tarnish their mother’s image any more than it already had become.

He was jolted out of his reverie by the small brunette woman that he worked closely with. “I’m sorry, Haru. Have you fed them already?” Miho asked.

“Yes. I was just making sure they were eating.” He lied. “The sunfish have been a bit persnickety lately.” Also a lie. If he could just get some space, he would surely be able to shake off those dark thoughts. Actually, they all just drew him back to his present situation. By now, his kids were probably comfortable in school, Makoto having taken them and ensured they’d gotten there on time.

“I can call in the vet if you think they need to be examined.” She replied. Haru shook his head and stepped past her into the hall. When he was partway down the corridor, he nearly slammed into the intern. The shorter man gazed at him with a bit of pink in his cheeks.

“Ah! Sorry, Mr. Nanase. I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going.” He bowed a bit, disheveling his short pink hair.

“It’s fine, Hayato. Watch where you’re going next time.” One interruption after another. Haru slipped past him and tried to suppress the bit of annoyance that he was feeling. The day was going to be short, he told himself. The aquarium was closed on Mondays for cleaning and maintenance, so he wasn’t running any tours.

As a matter of fact, the only real thing he had left to do for that day was ensure that whatever retirement home was touring the next day had a fully detailed copy of the schedule and the directions to get there. After that, Haru wasted time until it was nearly two and then he cut out a few minutes early, avoiding his coworkers.

The next stop was the store and he was confident that he could make it in and out without having to speak to anyone. As the doors slid open, he was overwhelmed by the sound of all the mothers that had picked up their kids and were now shopping. Grabbing a cart from the front of the store, he meandered down the aisles that seemed the emptiest, getting what he could before having to travel to the heavily populated parts.

One woman eyed him particularly hard as he grabbed the last of a brand of cereal off the shelf. “I want that for my kids.”

“Too bad.” He told her, not feeling the need to justify his reasoning. Haru was there first and he was guaranteed that the four boys in his charge needed it more than her one daughter did. The mother gave him a hateful look and kept going, probably pissed that Haru didn’t seem to care one way or the other about it. She wasn’t the first woman to tell him that he seemed like he didn’t care.

The one thing that Makoto had neglected to put on the list was an air mattress. As much as Haru didn’t want to belittle the job that Makoto did, it was pretty clear that he didn’t earn much more than a living wage. Haru made more than enough to support himself and his two children and he didn’t mind spending a little extra cash to help the father out.

The hardware department had a full stock of the faux-mattresses. So many, in fact, that Haru wasn’t sure which one to purchase. They came in all shapes and sizes, so he settled for getting a larger one with a built in air pump. It seemed like it would require the least maintenance. There were just a few more things left on the list.

It seemed like, as far as snacking went, the kids had similar tastes in food. Haru hoped that would continue, knowing how picky his own could be.

Nearly finished, he picked up a very specific flavor of oatmeal and the weirdest looking yogurt he’d ever seen and made a beeline for the cash register. Like a rock sinking in a tank, he realized that the lines were slam packed. The man, growing annoyed by the second, realized that he’d been in line nearly as long as it took him to gather all of the groceries.

Makoto was lucky that he owed him one. Make that two. Actually… he probably owed Makoto way more than just a few simple favors. That was the only way he made it through the register and out to the car without running over someone’s child with his cart.

The car ride was just what he needed to unwind. Haru was hoping for a few moments of peace once he got back to the apartment, but it was likely he wouldn’t get them. Makoto was very punctual and Haru had already promised to watch the kids at night.

There was a somewhat familiar car parked next to Makoto’s. Haru figured it belonged to the big guy with the dark hair. Haru hadn’t remembered his name beyond what Makoto’s son had called him, Uncle Sousou.

As if on cue, when he pushed the door open, he caught eye contact with him. Sousou must’ve just been leaving as Haru was pulling in. “Hi,” was all he felt like offering the other man. “Help me with the groceries.”

Haru opened the back door and grabbed as many bags as he possibly could. Sousuke eyed him coolly, but still helped. The man wasn’t sure what had made Makoto’s friend so hostile towards him, but it seemed like every time he caught Sousou staring, it was malicious.

Stopping at the door, he swung his arm over and used the key Makoto had given him to jimmy the lock. Makoto looked up from his seat on the couch, all the kids in various states of play around him. Rin and Ai were parked in front of the TV together and Rei and Nagisa seemed to be going over a worksheet with the other father.

“Thanks for going shopping,” Makoto said, moving to stand.

“Stop. We’ve got this.” Sousuke scolded him as Haru dropped the bags on the table. When the two men returned to the car, Haru grabbed the one bag that had been left behind.

“Was the cereal too much for you?” He rolled his eyes and closed the door. When he turned to face Sousuke, the large man took a few quick steps forward and pinned him against the vehicle.

Haru didn’t say anything, but regarded Sousou with irritation. “Don’t fuck with him.” He said.

“What?” Haru replied succinctly.

“You heard me,” he pressed his arm into Haru’s chest, forcing him painfully back. “Makoto has already been through enough bullshit with his ex. She just cut out one day and didn’t come back. Don’t pull any funny shit with him or I’ll drag your ass across this parking lot.”

Haru still didn’t say anything, but the gears were turning. Sousou pulled back, thrust his chest forward assertively once again, and then turned away to get into his car. Haru wasn’t particularly threatened by him, but his heart was beating a little quicker. He shook it off and went back upstairs, setting the last bag on the table.

Makoto had risen from where he sat and was slowly putting all the items away. Haru stood there for a moment until Makoto turned back. “How was your day?” He asked, green eyes soft and mellow.

“Long.” He sighed, crumpling down into one of the dining chairs. As much as he wanted to pretend, the Monday had taxed him more than he’d thought. The altercation a moment ago hadn’t really helped either.

“Got you that air mattress though.” He pointed to the large box, poised in the middle of the table.

Makoto took a few steps over and actually seemed to be a little disappointed. “Haru, you didn’t have to do that. I was going to buy one.”

Haru blinked at him. “Consider it my thanks.”

Hearing their father, Rin and Rei ran over to meet him. “Hi daddy!” Rin’s ruby eyes blinked up at him, juxtaposed to the cool blue of his brother’s.

“Hey,” his face slipped into the little grin that no one but his kids could bring out in him; or at least no one but his kids had brought out in a long time. “Did you two have fun today? Learn anything good?”

“We went over spelling words today in Mr. Tachibana’s class.” Rei looked over to Makoto, smiling a bit through an older pair of glasses Haru had found. The frames were brown and the left lens was cracked, albeit not as bad as what Nagisa had caused. He made a mental note to schedule an appointment with an optometrist as soon as possible.

“Did you learn any hard words?” Haru asked, prompting Rei to hand him the list. The words, he was sure, were nothing that Rei hadn’t seen before. His son had a fascination with reading that he fueled to the greatest of his abilities.

“I thought the word ‘gradual’ was kind of hard.” He looked down a little, trying to find it on the list.

“I know what it means!” Rin piped up. “It’s like, when something happens slowly!” He seemed so proud of himself and Haru felt the urge to tease him a little.

“But can you spell it?” He proposed, turning the word sheet away.

His smile faltered a bit. “Isn’t it g-r-a-j-e-w-l?”

Rei shook his head. “It’s g-r-a-d-u-a-l, Rin. I was going to ask Daddy what it means, but I guess I don’t since you told me already.” The younger boy smiled at his brother and Rin almost immediately forgot about his little flub. Makoto chuckled a little from in the kitchen and Haru resisted the urge to look over at him.

“You’re welcome!” He laughed. Somewhere along the way, the three of them had developed the little system of talking about what they’d all learned throughout the day. Haru figured it was a good way to stay involved in their schooling since so many extenuating circumstances had arisen to interrupt him.

“What about you, Rin?” Haru nodded to his son.

“Well, uh,” he frowned again. “Me and Ai were hoping you could help us with math homework. Mr. Yamazaki is a good teacher, but the math is really hard!” Wasn’t that Sousou’s last name? After that, he was a little uncomfortable with the idea of that man teaching his son. Haru caught Ai look over at him from across the room. Makoto’s son seemed the most hesitant about all of this. Haru wasn’t exactly sure how to alleviate his worries.

“I definitely will. You should go back over and keep trying. I want to talk to Mr. Tachibana and I’ll be there in a second.” He reached down to hug the two boys for a long moment and then let them go back over to their friends. Now Makoto’s children seemed to have moved onto Nagisa’s word list and were frowning at the white sheet. If they asked, Haru would help them as well. It was only fair.

“That was cute.” Makoto said, sticking that last box of cereal in the cabinet with oatmeal. “I mean, uh, you do a good job.” His blundering just made Haru want to scoff.

“I’m just doing my duty.” He shook his head and leaned back in the chair for a moment. “I’m glad that Rei likes you as a teacher. Is Yamazaki your friend, the big guy?”

Makoto nodded and leaned his hip against the white countertop. “Yeah, that’s Sousuke. He’s been really helpful with the kids and getting settled and everything. I know he can be a bit hard to handle at first, but I promise he’s got a good heart.” Makoto smiled reassuringly, and Haru decided not to tell him about the incident. “Plus he told me that the date went over well with Momo, so you shouldn’t have to worry about him coming onto you or anything.”

“That was never a worry of mine.” He replied. The thought really hadn’t crossed his mind. Who had time for something as petty as romance in times like this? Even still, Haru was most definitely not into rough play. Sousuke would never be a potential partner for him. Not in this life.

“I didn’t figure it was, but since you mentioned the thing about us being, uh, partners. I wanted to let you know.” Makoto blushed vibrantly and looked away. Oh, that.

Haru hadn’t meant it seriously. It was supposed to fuck with Gou more than Makoto. “Sorry if I made you uncomfortable. I had to tell her something.”

Makoto nodded quickly, but didn’t look back. “Then did you mean the thing about being ‘b-i’?” Haru blinked at him.

“Yes.” Makoto’s eyes seemed to bounce off his and land on the floor. “Is that a problem?”

That made him jump. “Ah, no! Not at all!” He waved his hands back and forth, as if that would completely confirm it. “I work with a few people who have different, uh, interests. I really don’t mind, I promise.”

“I believe you.” He stood from his chair.

“Why don’t I go set the air mattress up?” Makoto easily lifted the box from the table and headed out of the room, probably still a little embarrassed. Haru didn’t mind it too much and Rin was beckoning him over to help with math. The man took one last glance down the hallway before he headed over to the kids.

Their math homework was pretty basic arithmetic. Once Ai had gotten a handle on it, he pretty easily explained it to Rin, almost as a medium between Haru and his son. When they had finished with the five assigned problems, Haru was ready to eat dinner or take a nap.

The whirr of the pump in the other room had prompted him to go after Makoto and check it out. The mattress was already full and Makoto was lying in the middle of it, completely asleep. Haru just stared at him.

Haru still didn’t want to belittle Makoto for his job. It was one that he could never do. He loved his own children and would attempt to care for Makoto’s like his own while he was staying there, but there was no way he could handle an entire class of them. Haru steeled himself that he would help Makoto in whatever monetary way he could.

Perhaps they could strike a deal that Makoto could pay for groceries and Haru would cover the rent on his own. Makoto wouldn’t like that, but he would convince him. It was all he could really do at that moment to make up for the immeasurable kindness that he’d been shown. Before he even realized it, Nagisa had grabbed his hand.

“Mr. Nanase, are you going to make us dinner tonight?” The small boy’s green eyes bounced between his sleeping father and Haru’s own.

“Yes, I am.” He replied, not noticing that his features had softened into a small smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did so many things for this fic this week.
> 
> First of all, I edited the previous chapters to match up with this (http://snurtlicious.tumblr.com/post/117673086386). Basically, I just tried to imagine what the kids would look like according to who their parents are! Makoto's wife is a secret still, so I guess you'll have to wait and see! However, I personally love the idea of Ai and Nagisa getting older and having their hair colors darken to match Makoto's. You can ponder that ;))
> 
> The other thing is this (http://8tracks.com/snurtlicious/teach-me-tachibana). I made this a while back, but then I forgot to post the link to it on a current chapter! 
> 
> I'm really invested in this fic since it's gotten more views/comments/kudos than any of the others that I've written before. I even decided that I'm going to start making the chapters longer! Including the Soumomo date from the previous chapter, it ended up being around 3000 words. The body of this chapter is also about 3000 words, but that's purely chapter and nothing extra! Thanks so much for reading and even if you don't comment or kudos, I still appreciate it! <3
> 
> EDIT: I also updated the description to make it more accurate!


	10. Birthday Parties and Bitter Tears

A few weeks passed, the two fathers with four little boys slowly falling into a daily routine. Each morning, Haru would wake with his kids and leave before Makoto sat down with the group for breakfast. Makoto had told him that they could all wake up a bit early, but Haru declined the offer. He respected that Makoto and the kids could all use the extra half hour of sleep.

Rei had gotten his new glasses, shiny red frames to replace the ones that Nagisa had broken. Haru had to admit he was a little concerned when Rei first came back with them, but Nagisa made no attempt to touch or mess with them at all.

As per their agreement, Haru took charge of the care in the evenings. Makoto tried to be helpful where he could, but Haru nearly had to force him to step down from being such a busybody. Makoto, finally giving him a chance, usually tried to catch up on reading or planning for school. The brunet never made it more than an hour before falling asleep. Haru waited until he was done cooking to wake Makoto up.

For sleeping arrangements, Makoto liked the air mattress markedly more than the couch. It was long enough so that only his feet hung off the end. Makoto was tall, not as much as Sousuke, but more than Haru or Momo or nearly any of his other acquaintances.

Sometimes when he woke, Ai had climbed into the bed next to him, fearing the dark. Even Nagisa, seeing how his brother had reacted, crawled in on Makoto’s other side, flanking him with his kids. This started a tradition of the two abandoning their beds in lieu of sleeping with their dad.

When the rent came in, Haru physically took the checkbook from Makoto’s hand and tore the check he’d written in two pieces. “I’ll take care of the rent. Handle the groceries from now on.”

Makoto resisted, laughing him off. “Haru, I’ve been living here for a few months already, I can handle my own finances.”

“And now we’re staying here,” he pointed out. “So let me pay it. I owe you that much.” Haru gave Makoto the twelve hundred dollars in cash, prompting a wary look from the brunet.

“Do you normally pay your bills in cash?” He stuck the slips of paper down inside of the white envelope before lifting it to his mouth to run his tongue across the gross glue strip.

Haru just sighed. “I didn’t have a chance to grab the checkbook and the debit card before we left so I had them cancelled and now all I have is an ATM card. Sorry if cash is an inconvenience.”

Makoto immediately felt bad for being so picky about something that ultimately made no difference. “No, it’s not a big deal.”

At some point during that time, Haru and Makoto had fallen into an easy friendship. Makoto was willing to see past Haru’s standoffish demeanor and Haru was willing to be more open, even if only slightly, to Makoto.

Strangely enough, it seemed like Makoto was having the harder time of the two with opening up. Within a matter of days, Haru had divulged his past to Makoto, though it was a bit out of circumstance. All Haru knew of Makoto’s was the tidbit of information that he’d been told by Sousuke. Haru knew better than to press the issue, so he never brought it up to Makoto, though he was secretly dying to know more about his wife.

It was difficult for Makoto to put his finger on it, but something odd was happening with Haru. As time had worn on, Haru had been forcing Makoto to take time for himself. It had been alien at first, not having had any free time for a few years. However, Makoto was quickly remembering his love for reading, though he fell asleep often. Haru had stimulated Makoto and gotten him a few books while he was out and about.

The smile that Makoto gave Haru was exactly why he bought as many books as frequently as he could. After admitting to being bi to Makoto, feelings had been stirring. Once Haru handed Makoto a book he’d wanted to read for a long time and his peridot eyes lit up, Haru knew that he had some semblance of romantic inclination towards Makoto. Even if Makoto was with two kids and an unknown amount of baggage, Haru had his own too.

That realization had hit him like a ton of bricks and Haru had to take a brief moment in the bathroom to gather himself. He was afraid of liking someone. His only ‘adult’ relationship had taken nearly everything from him but his children. His dream, his home, money was trivial, but even the last ten years of his life had been taken by Gou.

After that, Makoto noticed that Haru was being more distant than usual. A few nights a week for that month that had passed, the two fathers would stay up after putting their kids to bed and talk. Sometimes it was venting about their day, though it was usually Haru that complained, and sometimes it was what the latest book’s plot had been.

Haru had come home with books for him often enough, but that particular novel was one that Makoto had been hankering to read for a number of months. He was overjoyed and wanted to make sure that Haru knew. That had been the end of their evenings together.

However, with Nagisa’s birthday quickly approaching, Makoto tried to pin Haru down to give him gift suggestions. Haru waved it off, claiming that he’d spent enough time with Nagisa to know exactly what to get the little blonde. Makoto had some reservations, but he figured that Haru could handle it.

Nagisa was thrilled that his birthday had landed on a Saturday, and Makoto had wasted no time making sure that there was a small party at the park near their apartment. The brown picnic tables had been covered in yellow plastic tablecloths and a cake had been placed in the middle. Makoto took a moment to talk with the parents of his students before returning to Sousuke and Haru. He was glad that so many other kids had shown up, but the cautious stares of the parents made him a little nervous.

“You did a good job, Tachibana. No need to be so worried about the party. The little carpet crawlers are doing fine.” Sousuke clapped him on the back, taking a drink of the punch that Makoto had concocted from some soda and fruit juice. It was noncaffeinated.

“He’s right. Rei and Rin are having fun too.” Haru gestured towards the basketball court where the four boys, along with a few other kids from the class, were drawing on the blacktop. Makoto’s gift for Nagisa was a sketchbook and somewhat pricey colored pencils. If Nagisa enjoyed drawing, then Makoto would do all he could to ensure that it was a road that his son travelled down.

“I’m glad. This was all sort of thrown together at the last minute. I didn’t even think about having a party until Nagisa said something.” Makoto sighed, leaning his head in his hands. “Sometimes I wonder if I’m letting too many things fly under the radar. You don’t think that I’m neglecting them, do you?” Makoto was horrified by the thought.

“Shut the hell up, Makoto. You’re a great dad, and you’ve got this guy giving you a hand too.” Sousuke shot Haru a look, but said nothing more.

“I agree with Sousou.” Haru blinked at him. “You do all that you can and they love you for it. There’s nothing to worry over.”

Makoto was relieved to hear that, a small grin overtaking his scowl, and then disappointed when Haru looked away. Makoto frowned a bit, still unsure what was making Haru act so nice to him and then immediately turn away.

“Thanks.” Makoto said. Nagisa, followed by a herd of kids, ran over. His sandy blonde hair was disheveled and tinted with purple dust just like his clothes, and Ai’s, and Rei’s, and Rin’s. Despite that, he carried the largest, toothiest (despite missing one or two) grin.

“Daddy, can we open presents and eat cake now?” He tugged at Makoto’s pants. The kids behind him all oohed.

“Sure,” he stood, scooping Nagisa up off the ground. “Let’s go open up all your gifts.”

“Yay!” Nagisa giggled, holding tight onto his father’s neck. “This is so much fun, I love you Daddy!”

“I love you too.” Makoto pecked a kiss onto Nagisa’s cheek. “Sou, will you get the cake ready?”

Sousuke nodded headed over to the other table. In the meantime, Makoto carried Nagisa over to the only other table in the park. Sticking a point party hat onto his head, Makoto sat Nagisa down in front of his gifts. A few of his classmates had brought small things, but the main four gifts were from Makoto and the other sons.

“Open mine first, Naggy!” Ai held a small box out for Nagisa. Makoto had taken Ai out shopping one weekend and helped him pick out the penguin pajamas that they both were confident that Nagisa would love.

He tore open the package and requested to change into them in the middle of the park. Makoto fretted and promised Nagisa that he could wear them as soon as they got home. He was unhappy until Makoto plopped the next present down in front of him and then the little blonde forgot all about it.

After all the other presents had been opened, Makoto pulled out a big gift bag. “This is from me to you, Nagisa. Happy birthday.”

Nagisa admired the bright yellow bag carefully and then reached down past the tissue paper to pull out the sketchbook. “A book!” He flipped it open and then seemed a little confused. “It’s empty?”

“Nagisa, that’s a sketchbook. You’re supposed to draw in it. Keep going, there was more in that bag.” Makoto urged him on, a little nervous that he wouldn’t like the present.

The blonde stood up in his seat and reached down into the bag to pull out the colored pencils. “Ooh, they’re pretty! I’m gonna draw a bagillion penguins with these!”

“You can draw penguins… and ducks, and butterflies, and sharks all you want!” Makoto encouraged him, hoping that if he could get the other boys excited about it, that it would make Nagisa even happier.

“They’re really cool, Naggy. I hope Daddy gets me some pretty colored pencils for my birthday.” Ai huffed, a little envious. Makoto winked at Ai, making him laugh a bit.

Sousuke marched over just in time for the presents to be finished. “Oh, Nagisa. Your cake is ready and waiting for you.”

All at once, the party shifted from one table to the next. Once the candles on the cake were lit, the entire crowd eagerly sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to Nagisa. The cake was cut and distributed and Makoto was amazed at how quickly the parents cleared their kids out after cake had been eaten.

Thankfully, the cleanup was rather the simple with the three men taking care of it. Before it had grown very late in the afternoon, they were piled up in Haru’s minivan and heading back to the apartment. Sousuke mentioned something about another date with Momo and cut out, leaving the two fathers alone with the kids to head inside.

Once they were a bit settled, Makoto watched as Haru went into the backroom and appeared moments later with a midsized box, all wrapped up in shiny silver paper. “Happy birthday, Nagisa. This is from me and Makoto.” Makoto raised an eyebrow, but played along. He didn’t want to ruin Nagisa’s surprise… whatever it was.

Nagisa’s eyes lit up as Haru sat it down in front of him. “Can I open it?”

“Sure, please do.” Haru laughed a little. Nagisa’s tiny hands immediately gripped the wrapping and tore it off in the most vicious display of paper murder that Makoto had seen the entire day. Nagisa and the other boys began to gasp as they realized what the gift was. Makoto wasn’t exactly familiar, but it appeared to be some sort of video game system.

“Happy birthday, Nagisa.” Haru shook him shoulder a bit and then stood back up. “It has four remotes so all of you can play with it.” Rin shot forward, closely followed by a curious and surprised Ai.

“That’s so cool, Nagisa. I can’t wait to play it!” Rin boasted, eyes wide as plates. Nagisa lifted the box up predatorily.

“Me first!” He stuck his tongue out at Rin, who looked a little crestfallen, and carried the box over to Makoto. “Daddy, thank you so much! Will you plug it in for me?”

Makoto stammered for a moment and then Haru stepped forward. “I can help you with it, Nagisa.” He tried not to be mad at Haru for buying something so exorbitantly expensive and then not mentioning it. It was just another brick in the wall of his insecurities. Makoto had wondered if letting Haru help him was really benefitting him or if he was only letting more slip through the cracks than ever.

By the time the machine had been all hooked up, Makoto had practically stewed himself into more than a bit of misguided anger. He wasn’t sure if it was at Haru or himself yet. Once all four boys had a remote in their hands, Makoto pulled Haru away, ready to meltdown.

“What was that about?” Makoto shut the door to the bedroom behind him. “You stop talking to me almost completely and then you buy my son a four hundred dollar present without telling me? And then give me credit for it? Do you know how sick that makes me, Haru?”

Haru looked visibly hurt, like Makoto had shocked him into reacting. “I’m… sorry. I only wanted Nagisa to be happy.”

Makoto leaned back against the door, clutching his hands in fists on his thighs. “I appreciate it, but that was still crossing a line, Haru. How would you have felt if I’d gotten something like that for Rin or Rei without telling you?”

“I would be irritated. I apologize, Makoto. I should’ve at least talked to you before I did that.” Haru admitted. “Don’t be mad at me.”

Makoto tried to calm himself down, but there was just something nagging at him. “I am. Ever since you’ve been watching them, I feel like everything has been falling apart. I didn’t even know what my son wanted for his birthday, how can you expect me to not be mad at you? You’re a better father than I am and my kids already love you and I—” His rant was cut off by the sudden spring of tears. Makoto brought his hands up to cover his face and was even angrier at himself for such an idiotic burst of emotion.

“Makoto,” Haru murmured. “You’re not an awful father. Your kids love you more than they could ever care about someone like me. Hell, even Rei and Rin think you’re amazing.” He took a few steps towards Makoto who had completely clammed up. “Makoto, look at me.”

Makoto begrudgingly removed his hands from his face and met Haru’s… smile? Makoto had never seen Haru look at him almost like he had a crush. Haru’s hand came up to clutch Makoto’s.

“What are you doing?” Makoto asked. Unfortunately, he was pressed back against the door. There was nowhere for him to retreat away from Haru’s touch.

“I like you.” Haru admitted, looking away from Makoto’s face. “It hurts, but I know that I do. Your smile,” he leaned his face towards a terrified Makoto. “Is beautiful.”

The instant Haru’s arms went around Makoto, he pushed back. He was rightfully confused and couldn’t understand why his heart was absolutely pounding out of his chest. “Why, why are you doing this?”

Haru, again, looked wounded by Makoto’s words. “Because I don’t want you to hate me, Makoto. Sousuke told me about how your wife walked out on you and left you with the kids and I—”

“He told you that.” Makoto turned cold and shoved Haru away a few steps. “You don’t know anything about me.” He turned and tossed the bedroom door open, heading two steps down the hall and into the bathroom. Makoto slammed the door loudly behind him. All at once, he crumbled to the floor. The angry tears from just a moment before had turned into bitter, mournful sobs that threatened to destroy him.

Haru knocked loudly on the door. “Makoto, let me in.”

Makoto pressed his back against the counter and waited for Haru to give up. This was all happening too fast for him to handle. Why had he let Haru move in with him? Why did Haru care about him?

Why did he care about Haru?

It had seemed like a good idea at the time, but lying on the floor in his bathroom, weeping, made Makoto question all of his choices. “Go away.”

He didn’t want, but needed for someone else to know. The secret that threatened to unleash a half a decade’s worth of willful forgetting. Makoto had always been strong for his kids, but he knew someone needed to be strong for him or he was afraid that he would shatter; quick and neat and into a hundred thousand pieces that not even Haru would be able to pick up. Something had to give.

Or else.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kill me. I am overall not very happy with this chapter. I tried to update it on Sunday, but it just did not happen. Bear with me while I figure out how best to make everyone miserable. I can't promise that the story will be very bright and cheerful in the next chapter, but it'll be something. 
> 
> On the bright side, I spent a good three hours on Sunday writing the smutty part of this story, so I guess I'm gonna jack the rating from T up to Mature, just in case. I'm not sure when exactly it'll be posted, but it's on the list and just the sex part is about 3000 words, so, for lack of a better pun, it's coming.


	11. Bad Dates and Champagne Bottles

A week passed before Makoto and Haru spoke again. The evenings were a labor of avoidance, Makoto doing anything and everything he could to not be alone with Haru. They talked when it came to the kids, but until Makoto decided that it was best he tell Haru, they hadn’t said more than a few words to each other.

However, this was no earthshattering secret; only something that Makoto hoped would force Haru’s hand and make him back off before his true secret was forced out. A while back, Kisumi had asked him out on a date, presumably to give him the one night stand treatment, but it was worth the risk. He’d told the fifth grade teacher that he would agree to it that Thursday, but Makoto was reluctant to tell Haru until Saturday, the day of.

Haru raised an inquisitive eyebrow as Makoto started getting ready. “You’re going out.” It wasn’t a question. God, here came the bomb Makoto was hoping to avoid.

“I’ve got a… date.” He replied, breaking eye contact. He didn’t want to see the way Haru’s eyes imploded, the way his expression fell, and the realization of his deep-seated fear of rejection that flooded across his features.

“Have fun.” Haru stepped back out of the doorframe and quickly slammed the door. Makoto’s heart sank in his chest a bit. He knew that was going to happen, but it was different to imagine breaking someone’s heart a thousand times and then it actually happening.

Makoto finished buttoning up his green shirt and headed out into the living room. The kids were playing on the new game system that Makoto had learned was called the “Wii U”. He hadn’t messed with it very much, but the little ones loved it, so that was enough for him.

“Daddy, where are you going?” Ai asked, abandoning his game controller. In a moment, he was holding onto the side of Makoto’s black slacks.

“I’m going out with a friend for a little while. Haru will keep an eye on you.” Makoto leaned down to give him a hug. “I love you and I’ll be back later. I love you too, Nagisa.”

The little blonde hadn’t even looked up from whatever game they were playing. “I love you too, Daddy.”

Makoto just shook his head and went to the door. Kisumi wanted to meet him at the apartment for whatever reason, so Makoto allowed it. Whatever bizarre date fantasy that Kisumi had with him would likely be broken by the fact that Makoto hadn’t been out on a date for the better part of a decade.

When the classic shave-and-a-haircut knock sounded, Makoto pulled the door open to see Kisumi leaning into the doorframe kind of provocatively. His long-sleeved shirt was rolled up to the elbows and the top few buttons were left undone, revealing a bit of his chest muscle. “Yo, Makoto.” He smirked, holding out a clutch of white flowers. “I hope you have a vase for these daisies. I thought you’d like them.”

Makoto tried to smile genuinely, but this was a bit much. “Actually,” he held his hand up to prevent Kisumi from coming inside. “Rei is allergic to daisies. If you bring those in, he’ll swell up.” Makoto remembered Haru saying that Rei was allergic to some kind of flower… or was it Rin? Was the flower even daisies? There was some heavy, dense sensation floating around in his stomach, masked by the nerves.

“Then I guess I’ll hold onto them for you, Makoto.” He grasped them tightly to his chest. “Shall we be off? I’ve got a reservation for two with my name on it downtown.” He held his hand out.

“Sure,” he ignored Kisumi’s hand in favor of turning back to bid the kids goodbye. “Be good for Haru, everyone. I’ll be back later.” The kids, still absorbed in their game, mumbled bye.

Makoto followed Kisumi down to his ice blue convertible. The top had been pulled down and Makoto was seriously convinced that Kisumi was massively overcompensating. It was only confirmed even further when Kisumi opened the car door for him.

“You don’t have to try so hard, you know.” Makoto told him. It was just a little awkward to be doted on like that.

“Nonsense,” Kisumi slid into the driver’s seat next to him. “Everyone deserves a little wining and dining, Mister Dad.” It wasn’t exactly the wining and dining part that concerned Makoto, it was what happened afterwards. “Just wait until we get out on the road. You’ll be having fun in just a couple minutes.”

Kisumi revved the engine loudly and then proceeded to pull out. Makoto was still feeling something weird in the pit of his stomach that was not nerves. Those had mostly subsided after he’d decided that this would likely be the only date that he went on with Kisumi. Makoto had never dated another man before, nor had he even considered it until recently, and he didn’t really feel anything special for Kisumi.

Kisumi flicked the radio on as they got onto the open road for the twenty minute drive downtown. “I hope you don’t mind jazz. I think it sets the mood.” He gave Makoto a sly look before putting his eyes back on the road.

“I, er, guess not?” Makoto replied, more exhilarated by the wind from the convertible car than the music. He’d never ridden in a car like this before and, while he was having fun, he knew his hair would be a mess by the time they arrived at the restaurant.

He was right. However, when he flipped the visor down, Kisumi flicked it back up. “You’ve got that sexy windblown look, don’t worry.” He winked. They were in the next city over, parked in front of a big, ritzy chateau that Makoto wondered how Kisumi afforded. The building was a large, western style and ivory bricked, gilded to the roof with gold trimming and beautiful light fixtures that Makoto knew he wouldn’t be able to describe to Ai later.

“This is amazing, how can you afford it?” Makoto asked, holding the door open for Kisumi. He wouldn’t be completely emasculated by this date, at least.

“Don’t worry about it, Tachibana. You’re such a wet blanket.” Kisumi teased him, grabbing his hand and pulling him into the ritzy building. The lights were low and sultry, appearing to be candles only upon further notice. It was hard to make out the further interior from where they stood. “Reservation for two under Shigino, garcon.” The snooty looking host pulled out two menus and led them to an uncovered table in the far corner of the restaurant, secluded from the other patrons who were dressed even snazzier than he was.

Makoto slid into the chair, noting that it was plush and comfortable. The table was, unbelievably, white marble that was cold to the touch. “This is unbelievable.” Makoto said under his breath. The only night he’d ever experienced something that was this mind-blowingly upper class was his honeymoon, and even that had been cut short when her water broke. Ai was named for their love. Makoto bit his tongue and perished the thought.

“So tell me about yourself, Makoto. What are your interests?” Kisumi leaned over the table, bringing his hand up to rest his chin on.

Makoto wracked his brain. “There’s not much to tell, I guess. At least, nothing you wouldn’t expect. I’m from a small town in northern Japan. I grew up with a younger brother and sister. Went to a university in Tokyo, and here I am.” Makoto kept it succinct, lest he give Kisumi room to ask him something invasive. “And my only recent hobby has been reading. I’ve had some free time because of… stuff.”

“That’s fun. I enjoy reading. What’s your favorite genre, mine is romance.” Kisumi’s eyebrow flicked up and back down almost imperceptibly. Makoto was going to say something, but the waiter arrived with a bottle of champagne in a bucket of ice.

“Thank you, sir. We’ll both have a glass.” Kisumi told the man, letting him pour two glasses of bubbly for them. Makoto was weak for champagne. It was fizzy and bubbly and, more importantly, it made him bombed out of his gourd quicker than any other beverage.

“I’ll just have a little.” Makoto stated, taking the tall glass in his hand and drinking just a sip. The flavor exploded across his tongue and he knew that he was going to have a problem if he drank more than just the one glass.

“If the bottle still has any in it, you can have it when we leave. I only drink socially, and my brother isn’t one for it either.” He replied, downing the glass like it was nothing.

“Y-you have a brother?” Makoto stammered, a bit taken aback by how aggressively Kisumi had taken that alcohol. Family was some common ground. Hopefully their conversation would go well then.

“He’s a couple years younger than me, but yes. He works at the aquarium across town.” The pink-haired man pulled open the menu and began skimming down the list, so Makoto followed suit. Unfortunately, it seemed to be all French.

“Ah, my, uh, roommate works at the aquarium. Perhaps your brother has mentioned him, his name is Haru Nanase?” Makoto was intrigued to see what other people thought of Haru. He was nice and Makoto enjoyed the easy company, but so many things had happened so quickly that it was hard to keep up. That heavy feeling kept coming back and Makoto was having a hard time smothering whatever it was.

“He mentioned something like that, I think. Black hair, blue eyes, kind of quiet?” Kisumi questioned. “And if you’re having a hard time with the menu, stick with the ‘Steak au Poivre’. It’s a good one.”

Makoto’s eyes scrolled down to where it sat on the list, but other than the word ‘steak’, he didn’t understand the rest. “That’s him. He’s a really great guy.” Makoto felt the need to talk Haru up to Kisumi.

“Were those his kids with yours?” Kisumi closed the page and sat it back down, spurring Makoto to follow suit.

“Yeah, he’s been having problems with his ex, so I offered to let him stay with me.” Makoto smiled, wondering if maybe he’d said too much.

“What about your ex? Kiddies like that don’t come from nowhere.” Kisumi inquired, much to Makoto’s chagrin.

“We’re separated.” Makoto put bluntly, feeling the ice creep into his veins. This was exactly why he was avoiding Haru. Makoto didn’t want to have to deal with this from two fronts at once.

“Messy, eh? You don’t have to be so testy, I won’t ask again.” He relieved Makoto.

When the waiter came back to take their orders, Makoto stumbled through the French and hoped that nothing would be messed up. The two men continued their casual, albeit tense, conversation. While Makoto was enjoying the classy atmosphere and the chat with Kisumi, there was nothing that really jumped out at him. Kisumi was charming, sure, but he was trying too hard to impress Makoto with the flashy restaurant and the car. He would honestly have been content with a fast food restaurant as long as it had been with Haru.

Wait, what? “Are you listening Makoto? The waiter is coming with our food.” Kisumi snapped him out of his reverie.

“Ah, yes. Sorry, I haven’t been sleeping well lately.” It wasn’t a lie, but it was a poor excuse. The waiter sat the mouthwatering steak in front of Makoto and then an expensive noodle dish in front of Kisumi.

“You could always stay at my place tonight if there’s someone watching the tykes for you.” He winked. Makoto immediately felt the blush creep into his face. There was the proposition. The man knew that Kisumi wanted to have sex with him. At the teacher orientation party, Kisumi had unabashedly hit on him. It was only an eventuality that the move would come on. What Makoto didn’t expect was for Kisumi’s foot to come up and run down the side of his leg.

“S-sorry, I can’t do that. It would be rude to make Haru stay up all night with the kids.” Makoto declined politely. Kisumi’s expression fell a bit as he dug into his meal.

“There’s always another time.” He perked back up. Makoto was a bit amazed at how quickly he bounced back after a rejection. If only Haru could’ve picked up some of that zeal, maybe they could’ve avoided this mess.

“Maybe.” Makoto shrugged and began cutting his steak. The meat was cooked so that it was just a little pink in the middle and it made Makoto’s mouth tingle as he ate it. It was likely the single most delicious piece of meat he’d ever have in his life.

Without even realizing, Makoto had downed the entire steak and was left with an empty plate. He had meant to go slow and savor the exquisite cuisine, but it had been too much to resist. When he looked up, Kisumi’s platter was also empty, and he was regarding Makoto with a cool amusement. “Did you like it?”

“It was delicious, I couldn’t help myself.” Makoto admitted, a little embarrassed with how he’d lost himself. Kisumi laughed and reached down to grab his wallet from his pants. He pulled his plastic out of the small black slip and tossed it onto the receipt.

“Courtesy of me, this evening.” Kisumi winked. Makoto felt a bit bad about letting him pay, but he didn’t even want to look at the price of the meal.

“Thank you, I liked it a lot.” Makoto replied sheepishly. He wondered what Haru was doing right then. It was a little late and the boys had likely all gone to sleep already. Was Haru waiting up for him? Makoto didn’t know if it would be worse or not if he was.

Kisumi popped the cork back in the bottle and passed it off to Makoto. Once the card came back, the two men left. “Where to now?” Makoto asked, climbing into the car.

“Home, actually.” Kisumi surprised him before they headed back down the highway, the wind roaring in Makoto’s ears.

“Oh, alright.” Makoto had anticipated some sort of shenanigans. He just knew it was unlike Kisumi to not make a move. The drive back was relatively quiet, only marred by the sound of smooth jazz. When Kisumi parked the car, Makoto turned to hear the click of a seatbelt being removed and then Kisumi was across the center console and all over Makoto.

As much of Kisumi’s body that could be was over the divider and pressed into Makoto. When Kisumi tried to force their mouths together, Makoto pushed back against him harder than he meant to. When the other man yelped in pain, Makoto tore off his seatbelt and climbed out of the car, ignoring Kisumi’s apologies and protests.

When he opened the door, the apartment was quiet. Only a single light had been left on over the sink for Makoto’s return. He sat the bottle of champagne on the table and slipped into one of the chairs. When he glanced back to the backroom, the sinking feeling that had been following him all night hit again. Makoto realized what it was that had been bothering him.

It was guilt. Guilt that he hadn’t spoken to Haru in a week, that he went on a date with Kisumi, and, worst of all, that he did the one thing that Haru would never forgive him for. Makoto knew that Haru had to hate him after going and doing something like that. In that moment of weakness, he reached for the champagne and took a long drink of it.

As the now warm alcohol slipped down his throat, his worries seemed to melt away. Who cared if Haru hated him? There was no way that was even a possibility. All that occurred to him was that Haru had admitted to having a crush on him and maybe he liked Haru too. Hell, he was just down the hall. Makoto decided that it would be a perfectly acceptable and rational thing to do, wake Haru up at midnight and apologize and tell him that he felt something too.

When he stood from the chair, he nearly face planted onto the beige carpeting. Makoto could only laugh at how ridiculous he was. Thankfully, the hallway was narrow and had walls for support. He leaned against the wall and knocked loudly on the door.

“Haru,” he drew out. “Wake up, I gotta talk to you.” His speech was slurred and his head felt heavy, but it was too late to back out now. There was a bit of a rustle and then the door cracked open to reveal a half-awake, slightly miffed looking Haru. Who cared?

“What.” Haru spat. Makoto pushed the door open the rest of the way and collapsed into Haru’s arms. “Are you… drunk?”

“I’m sorry, Haru.” Makoto regained his balance, but didn’t move away from Haru. “I was a dick and I,” he burped. “I lied to you. Do you hate me?”

“Makoto, we can talk in the morning.” Haru pushed Makoto out into the hallway and closed the door behind them. “What were you even thinking? How could you get drunk with your kids in the other room?”

“You hate me!” Makoto slumped against the wall, holding his head. “I’m so stupid, why did I think you’d take me now?” He whispered to himself, but it wasn’t quiet. Makoto’s head was a mess of drunken thoughts and subconscious fears. Whatever normally kept his mind in check had long since been washed away in a sea of champagne and shame.

“I don’t hate you.” Haru scoffed. “Seriously, go to sleep.”

“But you have to hate me,” he started crying. “I lied to you and Sousuke and I can’t stop thinking about you, and I don’t even know how I fell for another man.” Haru didn’t speak. “I made a mistake, so many mistakes, mistakes…”

“Makoto.” Haru commanded. “How much did you dri—” The words were cut off by Makoto stepping out from the wall and sloppily kissing Haru. Out of practice and wasted, his lips were uncontrollable and Makoto wasn’t even sure how to kiss someone for real. Haru forced him back.

“I want you.” Makoto slurred, falling back against the wall. “Is that wrong?”

Haru’s lips pressed together in a hard line, like he was fighting against something. “Go to bed. When you’re sober, we’ll talk. I won’t take advantage of you like this.”

The door cracked open and Ai’s head peeked out. “Daddy, what are you and Mr. Nanase yelling about?”

Haru leaned down. “It’s nothing Ai, he’s just a little sick. I’m taking care of him, you should go back to sleep.” Ai glanced between the two of them, but did as Haru asked, the door clicking softly closed.

When Haru stood, he grabbed Makoto’s shoulders and forced him into the living room. Makoto was still mulling through liking Haru and his complete self-loathing. When he opened his eyes again, he’d somehow landed on the couch and Haru was holding a glass of water over his head.

“Drink this.” Haru held the cup to his lips and slowly poured it into his mouth. Makoto wasn’t so out of his mind that he was unable to drink, but he did choke and sputter on it a bit. Haru sat the half-full glass down on the table and grabbed a blanket to drape over the half-conscious man.

“Good night, Makoto.” Haru whispered, before turning to head back to bed. Makoto’s hand shot out and grasped Haru’s.

“Wait, I gotta know,” he hiccupped loudly. “Do you forgive me?” Haru thought on it for a second before responding.

“Yes, Makoto.” He smiled softly. “I do.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah yes, the gay train has pulled into the station. They finally kissed! It's about damn time, but the road to get here was so worth it. This is by no means the end to the story, honestly. The mind-numbing, tooth-rotting fluff and horribly painful angst is coming. Get ready.
> 
> Thanks for reading! <3


	12. First Kisses and First Boyfriends

Makoto didn’t open his eyes when he woke the next morning. The throbbing of his temples versus the churning in his gut was shaping up to make that into an awful time. All he could think of was the empty bottle of champagne across the room and Haru.

Haru.

The one he’d rejected, but wanted. He was afraid of those blue eyes because of how they seemed to speak volumes, but only when you’d passed the cover and entrapped yourself in their words. He was a novel that Makoto longed to read, but his hands were covered in a thousand paper cuts from before that had left him unable to pick up even the smallest of pages.

As his heavy eyes slid open, his heart skipped a bit and his stomach lurched. Haru was slumped back in the ruby armchair with a blanket pulled up to his shoulders, sleeping with his mouth slightly open. The slow rise and fall of his chest along with the quiet snores he was making stung Makoto. Even though Haru said he forgave Makoto, the brunet had been drunk and forced Haru to kiss him.

The memory tingled at his lips, hot and cold, bitter and sweet, wanted and detested. Makoto wasn’t sure what he would do when those eyes looked at him again, those lips pressed against his and asked him what he felt. Makoto would probably crack and spill his emotions out on Haru like a tidal wave.

When Makoto tossed his legs out to stand up, he cringed as his foot knocked over an empty cup on the coffee table. It likely wasn’t loud enough to wake up the kids, but Haru roused slowly and opened his eyes. And so there they found themselves. It was nine in the morning, and the sun shone brightly in through the window. When blue met green, Makoto had to look away. He was shy and nervous and he didn’t know what he would do.

“Good morning, drunkard.” Haru teased, stretching out his muscular arms. Makoto blushed.

“I’m sorry for last night.” He sighed, reaching for the half-empty glass that Haru had left on the side table. The old water tasted disgusting and did nothing but make his stomach roil, but Makoto choked it down anyway. “A lot of things caught up with me and I did something stupid.”

“You don’t have apologize.” Haru stood, took a step, and then sat down next to Makoto. “But I should. It was wrong of me to pressure you.” He took a deep breath, scanning Makoto’s face. “I don’t feel anything when I look at people anymore, but when I see your face… the kids and you are the only things keeping me going.”

“What are you saying?” Makoto eked out, taken aback by how frank Haru’s words were. It was probably the first time they’d really spoken in quite some time.

“I don’t want you to feel obligated to be with me because I told you that I like you.” Haru confessed. “It’s unfair of me to force these feelings on you when you’re wrestling with your own.” Makoto had to admit his surprise at that, but he wasn’t sure how to tell Haru that he wanted him. His drunken lips had wasted no time leaking his true feelings, but his hungover mind was quicksand desperately trying to pull it all back in.

“That’s… wrong.” Makoto said through his teeth after a long moment of silence. “I’m afraid to like you, Haru. I’m afraid of being in love again.” In truth, his heart sputtered like a dying engine in his chest. The weights of the past kept trying to pull him back, but there was so much in front of him that he couldn’t stop.

“Then don’t love me yet.” Haru laughed, quiet and low. “We barely know anything about each other, but I want to. I want to know everything about you, Makoto.” Haru’s hand came up to clutch Makoto’s in a make or break moment. Makoto was nearly shaking at this point, head pounding, stomach about to burst. This was where he defined the relationship. Should they continue on as friends or could Makoto push past his first block and allow someone in?

“I want to know you, Haru. I want to know where you went to high school, what you had for lunch yesterday, why you came into my life. I need to know where you came from, but please,” his head drooped down onto Haru’s shoulders and his arms pulled him in tightly. “Don’t leave me.” In an instant, those words that Makoto had cried all those days ago hit him and a few tears slipped down his face before he could stop them. The headache was only growing by the moment, but their talk was so good that he couldn’t help but stick it out.

“For as long as you want,” Haru whispered. “I’m yours, Makoto.” Haru’s arms wrapped around Makoto and one hand came up to stroke the back of his head. “There’s something about you that I can’t shake. You are my sun.”

Makoto couldn’t stand it any longer. With tears streaming down his face, “Can I kiss you?” He looked down at Haru.

“Please.” Haru leaned his chin up and Makoto brought his down. Slowly, the soft pink brushed together. Haru pressed up hard into Makoto, slipping his tongue into Makoto’s trembling lips. Makoto couldn’t decide if he was afraid or exhilarated by the sudden weight dropped from his shoulders.

“I’m sorry,” Makoto whispered against Haru’s mouth. “I’ve liked you for some time, but there are too many things that you need to know. It isn’t wholly true that she left,” Makoto’s jaw clenched and he fought against the pain in his chest.

“Stop.” Haru pushed him back against the couch and straddled his waist. The way they were positioned, Haru was over the top of Makoto’s head and cool black bangs settled across his forehead. “You don’t have to tell me now. Tell me when you’re ready,” he kissed Makoto slowly. “Because I will be too. I like you.”

“I like you too.” Makoto whispered, sliding across the back of the couch so that he was on his back with Haru on top of him. His mind blanked as their mouths collided again, hot and desperate for the touch. This passion was long since overdue and the rapture of having someone to kiss and talk to and rely on was going straight to Makoto’s head. In fact, both of them.

Haru snorted a bit as his hands trailed a bit too far down for Makoto to be comfortable. His own clutched Haru’s and pulled it back, though he secretly wanted the touch.

“Dad?” In an instant the two men stopped touching each other and turned to see two little red eyes staring at them. Haru climbed off Makoto so fast that he nearly face planted into the coffee table.

“What are you doing up, Rin?” Haru leaned down, stealthily concealing the lower half of his body. Makoto tossed his legs up and rolled a bit so that he was sitting upright on the couch.

“I woke up and you weren’t there and I thought you went to work without waking me up.” Rin yawned, reaching out for a hug. “What were you two doing?” He eyed Makoto across Haru’s shoulder. Makoto was a bit worried that Rin might’ve seen a little too much.

“We were just… talking.” Haru lied, and not well. Rin laughed.

“That was not talking. Were you kissing?” The tiny boy with the same hair as his father pulled back from the hug with a big smile on his face. “Does that mean that he’s your prince, Dad?” Makoto froze. The kid had seen more than too much if he was saying something like that.

Haru glanced back to Makoto with pink cheeks. “It looks that way, doesn’t it?”

“Does that mean we’re staying here with Ai and Nagisa and Mako?” Rin was slowly bouncing up and down, clearly excited. Rei and Rin, outside of school, had taken to calling him Mako while his own kids simply called the other dad Haru. It made life a little easier.

Haru turned to Makoto for an answer. “Are we staying, Makoto?” He smiled a bit, throwing another pitch at Makoto’s heart.

“Yes, for as long as you want.” Makoto smiled back. Rin tossed his arms up in the air, ran around Haru and the table, and jumped on Makoto.

“Thank you so much, Mako! I love you!” Rin’s arms came down on either side of Makoto’s neck. Makoto’s heart at this point was simply dead. His eyes were wide open, staring into Haru’s equally wide eyes. That was something he never would’ve expected in a million years, but it made him happy.

“I love you too, Rin.” Makoto wrapped his arms around Rin’s back and shook him around a bit like he would’ve done for Nagisa. The boy laughed and begged for Makoto to stop. At some point, Makoto hoped this would be routine for him.

“Rin, come here for a second.” Haru beckoned him over. Makoto shook him a bit more before letting him down. The small boy slid off Makoto’s lap and walked over to his father. “I need you to keep what you just saw a secret from your brother and friends.”

“Aww, why? They’ll be really happy, I know it!” Rin huffed a bit.

“I believe you, but it needs to be between just the three of us, okay?” Haru was stern, but gentle.

“Alright, Dad. I won’t tell.” He was still pouting a little, but would likely be alright.

“Good. Now go on back to sleep. I’m going to talk to Mako and then I’ll wake you up when breakfast is ready.” Rin nodded and went back down the hall.

“What about work?” Makoto asked, standing from the couch with a rush of vertigo. He stumbled back and very likely would’ve fallen if Haru hadn’t rushed forward and grabbed him. As Haru pulled Makoto upright, his hand went back and harshly squeezed Makoto’s ass.

“Watch out.” He pulled his hands off, leaving Makoto extra flustered. “And I texted Hayato this morning and said I wasn’t going to be able to make it in today.”

“But you’re not sick.” Makoto didn’t particularly care for the unnecessary use of sick days. What would happen if Haru got sick later?

“You are though. At least hungover.” Haru walked over to the kitchen, flicked the light on, and his point was proven. Makoto flinched away from the bright fluorescence, covering his eyes with his hand. “Go take some aspirin and I’ll start breakfast.”

Makoto nodded and stepped around the side of the chair. As he put his foot down in the hallway, Haru grabbed his wrist. “Wait,” he pulled Makoto back a step. “Don’t go in there and break down on the floor, Makoto. If you’re going to do that, tell me.”

“Haru, I—” Makoto was cut off when Haru closed the gap between them and buried his head in Makoto’s chest.

“Promise me.” Makoto hadn’t pegged Haru as the touching type, but it was beginning to look like he’d never let Makoto more than a few feet away from him at a time. The taller man was strangely alright with it.

“I promise. If I need you, I will not hesitate to let you know.” He squeezed Haru tightly for a moment and then inched away.

“Hey,” he called. Makoto turned back in time for Haru’s lips to clash up against his own. He was alright with that too. “I’ll be waiting.”

Makoto blushed and hurried down the hall before Haru could make another move. It was awkward and sudden, but as he pulled the medicine cabinet open, he couldn’t get Haru’s face out of his head. There were butterflies there, in his stomach. That would probably make Rei excited.

He twisted the lid off the bottle and tossed back two white pills, sticking his head into the sink for water. The father had seen better days, for sure. Looking in the mirror, the bags under his eyes seemed darker than usual and his jaw was covered in what was substantially more than five o’clock shadow. If it weren’t for the pink in his cheeks and the light in his eyes, Makoto would’ve looked like he was in the middle of a cold.

After running a brush through his hair, Makoto headed back out to the living room. The sweet smell of coffee wafted around the room and he was thirsty for an injection of caffeine. Thankfully, there was already a mug waiting for him on the table.

Haru cracked two eggs into a pan. “Two scoops of sugar, right?”

“Yeah, I’m glad you remembered.” Makoto wasted no time grabbing up the mug and taking a big gulp of the hot drink. It warmed him up from the inside and was helping him kick his stomach ache.

“Where are you from?” Makoto sat the mug down on the table and rest his head on his hand. The couple claimed that they wanted to know more about each other, so Makoto figured this would be a good way to start.

“Here.” Haru answered, scrambling the eggs. “I grew up with my grandmother in our home across town.” Makoto sighed and rubbed his eyes a bit. He helped Haru move to the apartment; he should’ve known that already.

“What about your parents? Any siblings?” Makoto interested to see if he had any brothers or sisters. Ran and Ren were very important to him, even though he hadn’t spoken with them in ages.

“My mom and dad like travel so they aren’t around very much and no, I’m an only child. What about you?” Haru sprinkled on some salt and pepper, plated the eggs, and passed them off to Makoto. “Eat.”

“Thanks for the food, Haru.” Makoto smiled, picking up the fork. “I’m from a small town up north called Ikuno. Family was always really important growing up, so we were always surrounded by our grandparents and aunts and uncles. But I do have a younger brother and sister who’re twins. I wonder how everyone’s doing.” Makoto took a bite of the eggs and was thankful for the hot meal.

“What are their names?” Haru cracked two more eggs into the pan and continued the breakfast procedure.

“My parents thought they were really clever so they’re named Ran and Ren. Sort of like Rin, but with an ‘E’ instead on an ‘I’.” Makoto clarified. Ran and Ren would love Haru’s kids. Jeez, it had been so long that they could very well have had their own kids by then. Makoto would have to call his mom and ask her how things were going. What would she think when he told her about Haru?

“Cute. What’s your favorite color? Mine is blue.” Haru dressed his eggs up and then came and sat across from Makoto.

“Should I wake the kids or?” Makoto raised an eyebrow as Haru’s hand reached across the table.

“Let’s have a few minutes for us, Makoto. I want to talk to you.” He clasped Makoto’s fingers for a moment and then pulled them back, acutely aware of the blush that Makoto was sporting.

“S-sure, Haru. My favorite color is green.” He shoved some egg in his mouth before he could stutter and embarrass himself again. “When is your birthday?”

“June thirtieth. Wait, how old are you?” Haru prompted. That was an excellent point. They hadn’t even talked about how old they were. Makoto had just assumed that they were the same age because of their kids.

“November seventeenth is my birthday, and I’m twenty-eight.” Makoto was enjoying their casual conversation. It was much nicer than not speaking to him at all.

“Me too. We were born in the same year.” Haru snuck a bite of the eggs, which was surprising since he had a tendency to only eat fish.

“How did you pick marine biology? It seems really interesting.” Makoto was curious. “I fell into teaching because I loved taking care of my younger siblings so it only made sense for me to work with kids too.”

“Circumstances required that I change my career path.” Haru answered a bit stiffly.

“Oh? What did you do before?” Makoto took a drink of the coffee again, feeling the aspirin begin to ebb the pain away from his headache.

“I was a professional swimmer until I met Gou.” Haru was treating the story awfully casually. How many times had he been forced to recount those events? Though, the whole professional swimming thing would explain why his body was still in great shape. Haru must’ve trained a ridiculous amount for something athletic like that.

“Was it because she was pregnant?” Makoto tested the waters a bit. He was more than aware of how prickly those memories could be and he didn’t want to force out any details that Haru would be uncomfortable telling him.

“It was supposed to be a one-time thing, but you’re also supposed to wear condoms for a reason.” Haru sighed, but Makoto had no room to talk. Two kids didn’t come from nowhere. “When I found out she was pregnant, we started dating and got married. I quit swimming since it required too much travelling and if I got dropped for whatever reason, we’d lose everything. I picked marine bio because it was as close as I could get to the water as possible.”

“Haru…” This time it was Makoto’s hand that reached out to Haru. “I’m sorry that you lost your dream.”

“That was almost ten years ago. I’ve moved on.” Haru shrugged it off. “I have new dreams now and I want you to be a part of them.”

“I think I do too and I want you to be there for me and Ai and Nagisa. They really care about you.” Makoto confided, maybe not feeling so pressured about revealing his true feelings for a change.

“Rin and Rei love you. I thought I was going to break down, honestly. They told me that they hate their mother so I try to keep her away from them.” Haru held Makoto’s hand in one hand and the fork tightly in the other. “She did awful things in front of them, said awful things to them about me.”

“I won’t betray you, Haru.” Makoto stood and sat in the chair next to Haru.

“If I asked you to move in with me, would you?” Haru scooted out to the end of the chair so he could be closer to Makoto, catching him off guard with that question.

“But, I thought she was staying in your house?” The man asked, not quite sure what Haru was getting at.

“Your friend, Sousou, told me to file a restraining order. I didn’t want to at first, but I want my house back and the six of us can’t stay cramped up here forever.” Haru had a very good point, but Makoto was a little hesitant.

“If I say yes, does this make you my, uh, boyfriend?” Makoto sped through the sentence, hoping that Haru wouldn’t have him say it again. It was just too weird to think about.

“There is no one I would rather call that.” Haru leaned in and kissed him. “My boyfriend, Makoto.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -wipes away tear- I never thought we would get here. The big yaoi kiss and now they're boyfriends. Brings tears to my eyes. I'm not kidding I cried like three different times while writing this chapter.
> 
> Dad fic is still going strong. Many more things have to happen, so don't think that it's getting close to the end yet. Lol. 
> 
> Also I know I keep saying that the support has been overwhelming, but like, this fic gets kudos almost every day and I read (and respond usually) to comments like crazy. Like, I try to update once a week just because I know you guys thirst for it and I appreciate it a lot. Thanks for reading and I'll see you next time on: Gay Dads. <3


	13. Temporary Restraint and Sleeping Together

Haru stuck to his word, getting a temporary restraining order from the police department. The process was more complicated than the man had expected. Unfortunately, to get the permanent one, he would have to attend a hearing. In the meantime, he had to notify his ex-wife. Haru chose to go on his own to get the papers and to serve Gou with them so that she would have to leave his house. Not the best way to go about it all, but Haru wanted to do it for Makoto.

Sweat ran down his back as he pulled the minivan into the driveway. If things went as planned, soon the six of them would be living in the large, classic manor. Haru stuck the key in his pocket and grabbed the sheet of paper off the console. The slow walk up to the door like that reminded him of that night.

Haru had worked late because the aquarium had been getting some new animals and they needed his expertise. Gou had promised to watch the kids, just in kindergarten at that point. However, when Haru returned home, there was a car he didn’t recognize in the driveway. Things had been a little rocky between the two of them lately, but it couldn’t have been what Haru was thinking.

It was a bit too quiet in the house when he stepped inside. The kids had already been put to bed, but Haru could hear someone talking upstairs. He was quiet so he wouldn’t wake Rei, who was a bit of a crybaby. When he opened the bedroom door, however, he never expected to see someone on top of Gou. He dropped the Chinese food that he’d brought home for her and rushed forward.

All at once, Haru was fist and feet and teeth and beating some guy senseless. All the while Gou was screaming at him. When Gou managed to get between them Haru’s fists fell. The other man fled, leaving Haru sitting on the bed with his head in his bruised hands.

“Why?” He repeated, confused and in shock. His mind was abuzz with every single error he’d ever made against his wife, though they were small compared to what she had done.

“Because I don’t love you. I never did, I just stayed for the kid that I didn’t really want.” She shrugged it off and Haru heard a pitter-patter of footsteps approach. “Did you really think that having another son would fix everything?”

“Gou, stop.” Haru told her, standing to close the door. Haru guessed Gou must’ve taken that as him trying to grab her, because the next second her fist was in his face and his nose was bleeding. Two pairs of innocent, young eyes staring straight into his and his heart shattered like a mirror on the floor, shards reflecting back the pain he felt.

Haru tensed his jaw and shook the memory off. He was moving on, or trying desperately to. He rang the doorbell and waited for a long moment for Gou to answer the door. As soon as the wood slipped open, she looked unhappy.

“If you’re not here with the kids then you can leave.” She sneered. Before she could snap the door shut, Haru held the paper out to her.

“You can leave. You’re trespassing on private property.” Haru recited exactly what the police officer had told him. “This is a restraining order. Next week is a trial and if I win, then you have to stay away for five years or get arrested. I’m taking the house back.”

She laughed a bit and handed the paper back to him. “I already went to court and their ruling was idiotic. Those kids were in me for nine months, Haru. I deserve to see them. I am their mother.”

“No!” Haru barked at her. “You deserve nothing. Where were you when I had to hold Rin and Rei every single fucking night to get them to sleep because you were gone? What about when they told me that they hated you? You know how long it took me to convince them that I loved them and wasn’t leaving after you lied to them and told them I was? How was I supposed to react to all of that shit you did?”

“They’re my kids, Haru, and I—” Haru slammed his fist against the door frame, shaking the entire porch.

“They are my kids, not yours. I will be damned if they have to go through all of that again. Get the fuck out of my house now or I’m calling the police and you _will_ go to jail this time.” Haru spat, nearly shaking from rage. That she had the audacity to say that Rin and Rei were hers astounded Haru. She had lost court case after court case and was grossly negligent.

“Fine.” She took a few steps back inside and came out with a coat and a bag. “I’ll leave your precious house, but believe me, Haru. This isn’t the end of this. Those kids belong to me, not you.”

“I have custody of them, Gou. This is just a restraining order. They won’t be yours again.” Haru watched her traipse down the sidewalk, get in her car, and leave. He leaned against the doorframe and sighed, attempting to calm the pounding in his chest. That had gone both better and worse than he thought it would.

Haru stepped inside and pulled his phone out. He clicked on the dorky selfie that he’d taken with Makoto and then secretly set as his contact picture and hit the call button.

“Hello, Haru?” Makoto answered. Haru immediately felt some measure of relief.

“She’s gone, Makoto. The house is all ours.” Haru announced, still taking in the peace he felt in being in his childhood home.

“You managed to get her to leave? That’s kind of impressive. I’m happy to hear it.” Makoto scoffed a bit, but Haru knew that he was smiling on the other end of the phone.

“Do you want to bring some pajamas with the kids and stay overnight?” Haru asked. “I want to show you all of it.” In reality, the place was the perfect size for both their families. He’d always wondered why his grandparents had built such a giant house and then only had one kid, but now Haru knew. They had been accounting for any future generations that couldn’t get out of bed.

“That sounds… exciting and kind of scary.” Makoto laughed. “But we will. Do you want me to bring dinner too?”

“No, I want to cook for you.” Haru glanced back towards the kitchen. He’d probably need to run down the street and pick some things up for dinner.

“Oh, alright. Can you text me the address? I don’t want to get lost. I was, uh, too busy looking at you the last time we went there to remember the directions.” Haru pictured Makoto’s blush and smiled a bit.

“I will. I’ll see you in a while, Makoto. Drive safely.” He waited a moment for Makoto to say his goodbye and then hung up. A quick text later, and Makoto promised to be there within the hour. Haru tossed himself back across the couch for a bit and then psyched himself up. The man he was in like with was bringing the kids home for dinner. What a weird notion.

He slinked off the couch and into the kitchen. Haru enjoyed cooking so he’d spent a pretty penny to have the kitchen remodeled. The floor was blue tiled and the walls were all painted beige like sand. There was a lot of black counter space juxtaposed to the sleek, stainless steel appliances. Haru pulled the door open on the fridge and frowned. All that sat inside was some rancid takeout and a half empty box of wine. He wasted no time tossing them both into the trash.

Haru had to hurry down the block to the convenience store before Makoto got there, so he grabbed his key and hustled out to the minivan. He’d been to that store probably a thousand times and the kind old woman that owned it sat behind the register. Once he’d gathered the fish and a few other things, he made small talk with her about how it was nice to see each other. She commented that he seemed to be in a hurry and Haru had no qualms telling her that he had a date. The old woman blushed as he ran off.

Once back at the house, he went upstairs and began dressing the beds. The house, in total, had five bedrooms. That would be one for each of the kids and then he and Makoto would share the master. It would likely make Makoto sputter and blush, but Haru was counting on it. He couldn’t help that Makoto smiling made him act like an idiot.

After he tossed the last comforter onto the Rei’s bed, he heard the doorbell ring. He hustled downstairs and greeted Makoto gladly, resisting the urge to steal a kiss in front of the kids. “Welcome to your new home.” He told his boyfriend. It had only been a number of days since that morning, but everything between them had changed.

It was a bit like being in high school again, or what it would’ve been like had Haru dated in high school. Each day when they returned to the apartment, they would steal five or ten minutes for themselves in the backroom. It began with them simply talking about how their days had gone, but had quickly turned into them seeing how quickly they could have a make out session.

“Wait, are we moving here?” Nagisa marveled, crossing the threshold and taking it all in with wide eyes.

“We are, I think. Haru offered to let us move in with him. This way, you two can have your own bedrooms.” Makoto told him, causing Haru’s chest to lurch a bit. They were really moving in together… not that they hadn’t before, but things were different.

“Did you bring the duck, daddy?” Ai looked up. Haru was certain that it referred to his nightlight.

“Don’t worry, Aiichirou. I grabbed it before we left the house.” Makoto leaned down and scooped his son up. “I also grabbed the storybook before we left too. For you.” He smiled a Haru.

“Thank you, I’m sure the boys will appreciate it.” Haru stepped aside and let them come further inside. “I’ve already made up the rooms, so everything should be good to go once it starts getting late.”

“I’m glad we’re home! I miss my bed a lot!” Rin wasted no time running up the stairs.

“Hey, dinner will be ready in a while. Do your homework.” Haru called after him.

~~~

The door slid closed behind them. “So I guess this means we share a bedroom now?” Makoto asked, glancing between the grey bedsheets and Haru.

“We don’t have to,” he shrugged it off. “I was hoping that you might want some quality time with me.” Haru shirked off his jacket and approached Makoto slowly. “Is that okay?”

“I don’t see why not. Let me change first and then we can go to bed.” Makoto looked into the cracked door at the side of the room. “Is that a bathroom?”

Haru nodded. “Yes, go ahead.” In the meantime, Haru put his own pajamas on, thankful that Gou hadn’t thrown out the clothes he’d left behind. As Haru lay down on the bed, Makoto cracked open the bathroom door and slowly walked out. His large, yellow shirt was coupled with a pair of green pajama shorts and Haru thought it was a bit cute.

“Which side do you sleep on?” Makoto asked, stopping a few feet away.

“Usually the right.” Haru replied, rolling over so Makoto could get on next to him. Once they were settled in, Haru flicked off the lamp on his nightstand. The only light in the room was from Haru’s alarm clock, but it was enough to see Makoto fidgeting a bit next to him.

“Is everything alright?” Haru asked, leaning forward.

“I’m not really used to sleeping in such a big bed is all.” Makoto replied. “Also with someone besides the kids.” He tacked on.

“Do you want me to go sleep on the couch?” Haru offered. Wasn’t like he never slept there before.

“No, not at all! This is your bed, I won’t take it away from you.” Makoto shook his head. “I guess I’m just kind of happy.”

“Happy for what?” Haru probed, hoping to get something out of Makoto.

“Before we met, I had been wondering what I was going to do for a while. The boys were getting older and I knew that they would want their own space, but I didn’t have the money to get a bigger place. Now I’m suddenly here with you, like all my prayers have been answered.” Makoto told Haru, reaching his hand out to clutch Haru’s. “Thank you for this, I never thought that I would be able to give this to them.”

“You don’t have to thank me like you’re the only one getting anything, Makoto.” Haru scooted over. “I never thought I could be like this with anyone again and I was tired of being alone. I’m glad that Nagisa broke Rei’s glasses.” He surprised his boyfriend by leaning down and placing a gentle kiss on his lips.

“Haru…” he whispered. “Again.”

Haru’s lips came back down, rubbing on Makoto’s until he submitted into it and parsed his lips. As their tongues rubbed together, Haru couldn’t help but let his hands wander a bit. Curving over muscle and skin, it was getting heavier than they had before then and there was no one to interrupt, no one to have to watch.

Haru climbed on top of Makoto’s lap. “What do you want, Makoto?”

“Kiss me.” He replied quickly, clearly starting to feel it. Haru obliged, taking his time to kiss along Makoto’s jawline, then down his neck, and then he nipped at Makoto’s collarbone. Makoto had been pretty silent, but once Haru’s teeth clamped down on the sensitive skin, Makoto loosed a small moan.

“You like that?” Haru asked, slipping his hands under Makoto’s shirt. Haru wasn’t sure what he expected, but Makoto’s chest was covered in fine hairs that made his hands feel tingly as he rubbed them around. In a matter of moments, Haru felt something pressed against his lower back. Makoto liked that very much, apparently.

“Haru, I’m really warm. Is it hot in here?” Makoto choked out, obviously caught in the moment but too afraid to act on it.

“It’s not just you.” Haru was feeling it too. It was the first contact he’d had with another person in a while, especially with someone he liked. “Do you want to do anything tonight? I don’t want to force anything on you.”

“I’m not sure, I can’t really breathe, but I can feel you touching me and I’m not sure I’ve ever felt like this before.” Makoto replied, breathing heavily. Haru slid off his waist, hoping to ease whatever issues he was having with the breathing, and let his hands roam maybe a bit far down. Makoto jerked a bit as Haru’s palm crossed the crotch of his shorts.

“W-wait, I can’t…” Makoto eked out and Haru pulled his hands off and back. “Sorry, I’m not ready.”

“Don’t worry about it, Makoto.” Haru leaned in and pressed his lips against his boyfriend’s. “It’s only been a few days, but I can’t resist when you’re right here.” Haru wanted to keep going, but he didn’t want to scare Makoto. “That’s enough for tonight.” Across the room, Haru heard the familiar scrape of the door on the floor.

“What is it?” Haru was surprisingly not annoyed by the interruption, and wasn’t really able to see which child it was.

“Daddy.” Ai’s teary voice eked out. “I’m s-scared of the dark. Can I sleep with you?”

“Ai,” Makoto’s breathing was still heavy. “Yes, you can.” Makoto’s hand met Haru’s briefly in the dark before the tiny body climbed up between them.

“Oh!” Ai gasped. “Is Haru here too, daddy?” A small hand came down on Haru’s arm.

“He is. We’re sharing a bed for now.” Makoto whispered, scooting over a bit so that Ai would have room to lie down.

“That’s okay. I like Haru.” Ai laughed, pulling the blanket up over his waist.

Haru smiled a bit as he laid his head down. “I like you too, Ai.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man this chapter was full of angst AND gay stuff. You're welcome ;)


	14. Sick Days and Beetle Fireworks

The following morning, Makoto didn’t wake ten minutes before his alarm as usual. In fact, Makoto didn’t wake up at all. At least not until Haru rustled him and realized that Makoto’s eyes were glazed over and his forehead was hotter than the shower Haru just took. Thankfully, Ai had already run off to get ready for school and didn’t seem to be effected by his dad’s fever.

“What time is it?” Makoto slurred, tossing the patchwork comforter off himself. “I gotta get ready for school.” He leaned forward and attempted to stand. Thankfully, Haru was right there to catch Makoto before he could fall face first into the brown hardwood floor.

“You aren’t going anywhere. You’re sick, Makoto.” Haru laid him back across the mattress and grabbed his phone off the nightstand. “I’m calling Sousou and letting him know you’ll be missing work today.”

Makoto coughed a few times. “Wait, but there’s a math test today. I’m going to get in trouble if I miss it.” His voice was pleading, but so nasally that Haru easily refused him.

“Too bad. They’ll deal.” He spat, sending a quick text to Sousuke to give him the information. While he was at it, he texted Hayato to let him know that one of his kids was sick and Haru had to stay home and watch him. Less than a minute later, Hayato sent him the okay. Haru didn’t hear back from Sousuke, but he was sure that the brute had gotten his message.

“I’m going to take the kids to school.” Haru told Makoto, pressing his hand against the very warm forehead. “What hurts?”

Makoto groaned and coughed again. “My head and my throat are killing me.” He said between coughs. It sounded wet and gross. Haru planned on stopping to buy him some medicine because he couldn’t let his boyfriend suffer. He also figured he should probably stop off by the apartment and get some more clothes since Makoto wouldn’t be able to go anywhere for at least a day.

Makoto felt like he’d been run over. The night before had been so amazingly beautiful that of course he would feel like shit the next day. It seemed like every time he was happy, something went wrong and he ended up getting the shorter end of the stick. Makoto wanted nothing more than to just enjoy one morning rush with Haru in their new home, but that would take a few days at least now that he was sick.

The brunet resisted falling asleep, though it wasn’t too hard with his constant coughing, in favor of waiting for Haru to get back. Of course he failed. The fever had absolutely overpowered his brain and it was no chore at all for him to fall back asleep in his delirium. When he woke up next, Haru was standing over him with a bowl and a glass of orange juice.

“How are you feeling?” He sat down on the edge of the bed, placing the bowl on the nightstand with a heavy clink. “I took care of a few errands while I was out and got you some medicine and ice cream for your throat.” Haru reached into his pocket and pulled out the little sealed tablets. The medicine he’d purchased had a little bit of everything in it and he hoped that it would have Makoto back on his feet in no time.

“Better and worse.” Makoto croaked. “You didn’t have to do that.” His throat was drier than Sousuke’s humor. He took the juice with one shaky hand and the pills with another.

“I did.” Haru said simply, reaching for the white porcelain bowl on the nightstand. “I got vanilla.” The bowl tilted down so that Makoto could see the pure white crystal.

Downing the pills, Makoto winced at how much his throat was actually killing him. He eagerly took the freezing bowl from Haru and shoved the spoon in his mouth. The ice cream still hurt a little as he swallowed, but it was quickly dulling the pain. “It’s delicious, thank you.”

“It was nothing special.” Haru brushed it off. “You’re my boyfriend. I should want to take care of you.” That made Makoto smile, though his guts twisted.

“I guess so.” Makoto replied, not sure where to take the conversation from there. He enjoyed spending time with Haru, but it was weird dating someone. What irked Makoto the most was that he had always kept tabs on everything and always busy, but now Haru had stepped in and the burden had lessened tremendously. What was he going to do with all the money he was saving from not paying rent each month?

“I don’t want to bother you when you aren’t feeling well,” Haru sighed. “But we need to talk about next week.” Makoto immediately knew that it was about the restraining order. “I need your testimony. If she shows up and starts… spouting that self-righteous garbage, I won’t be able to stop myself from shouting at her.”

Makoto’s expression hardened a bit. Of all the things that he disliked the most, how Haru became when he talked about Gou was near the top of the list. “Of course I’ll be there. I hate to play the devil’s advocate, but she did slap me for no reason.”

Haru’s gaze fell to the tatami. “Are you sure? I don’t want to be a burden to you, Makoto.” His voice cracked a bit. “I just want to be free again, with you and the kids.”

It was true. The last barricade on Haru’s heart was Gou. If she could be permanently removed from the picture, then there was nothing left to prevent Haru from being fully open to Makoto. It was both exhilarating and frightening.

Makoto, wanting to spare Haru from the hell of being sick, reached out and grabbed a hand that was balled into a tight fist. “You aren’t a burden, Haru. If anything, I’m the burden. I can’t believe I got sick after… _that_.” He referred to the lascivious events of the previous evening. Nothing had really come of it, but it stuck in the back of Makoto’s slightly feverish mind like a knife.

Slowly, Haru’s tension eased and his fingers winded into Makoto’s. “I’m glad to hear you say that.” Haru heaved a relaxed sigh. Seemed to him like the only things he’d gotten right in a long while were his kids and Makoto. “And I guess I should apologize for last night. I wasn’t really sure what came over me.”

Makoto blushed, though Haru probably didn’t notice due to the feverish glow that Makoto already possessed. “I didn’t really… mind.” Makoto admitted. “I don’t normally do things like that, so it was overwhelming. I’m kind of weak to that stuff.”

Haru smirked a bit, noting that for later. “I’ll remember that for next time.” Makoto immediately regretted his candor. Maybe he’d be a bit more tight-lipped about his sexual proclivity in the future.

“Don’t make it weird, Haru.” Makoto chastised him, feeling awkward now that they had talked about sexy stuff.

“I didn’t make it weird, you were the one that brought it up.” Haru rebutted, displacing the blame off himself. After all, it was completely Makoto that said he didn’t mind being touched.

“Alright, but you have to admit that you made it a little weird, Haru.” Makoto pulled his hand back, but Haru moved as well.

“In for a penny, in for a pound.” He smiled, gently kissing Makoto. There was no tongue until he licked the residue of vanilla ice cream off his lips. “Sweet.”

Makoto’s reaction speed was a bit off, but he still managed to freak enough. “Haru! You’ll get sick too! Then what will we do? The kids can’t function if we’re both stuck up in bed!” And that triggered a bout of coughing that scared Haru enough to give Makoto the glass of juice and back off.

After the bout calmed, Haru took the emptied cup back from Makoto. “Sorry. Are you alright?”

“Not really,” he groaned. “I feel like hell.”

“Makes sense.” Haru shrugged. “You’re hot.”

Makoto scoffed immediately. “You did not just make that stupid joke.”

Haru blinked at him for a second. “No, I meant your fever is coming back.” He reached up and pressed the back of his hand to Makoto’s forehead. “That isn’t wrong though. You have pretty eyes.”

“They aren’t as pretty as yours.” Makoto argued back. “Rei is lucky.”

“Ai is lucky. He looks just like you.” Haru smiled, grateful that he could have this stupid conversation with someone.

Makoto’s head fell back to the headboard. “Nah, he looks like his mom. He has her eyes.” The pills were starting to hit him and he was becoming drowsy again.

“So does Rin. I wish he had blue eyes too, then I wouldn’t have to see her every time I looked at him.” Haru sighed, though he would never hold anything against his son. The five of them were his most precious people, even Makoto’s children had grown near to his heart.

“He’s still pretty cute though,” Makoto yawned. “You have good kids, Haru.”

“You do too, Makoto.” Haru leaned in and pecked him on the cheek. “Go to sleep, I’ll be here when you wake up.”

 

**_SOUMOMO DATE ROUND 2:_ **

 

Over the course of the month and a half that Makoto and Haru’s romance blossomed, there was another couple on the periphery that done more than that. If Makoto and Haru were a bud, Sousuke and Momo were a flower. In the time since their first date, the two men had been out on six more dates. They spoke at length each day, and Sousuke was beating down the door to Momo’s office each day for lunch.

Sousuke wasn’t even sure how it happened. It seemed as though one day he’d gone to bed alone and then the next morning there was someone with him that seemed to light him up from the inside out. The nights when Momo couldn’t stay over were a bit quiet for Sousuke’s new tastes, but the morning texts always served to lift his moods and he almost couldn’t wait to go into work each day. Momo was everything that he wanted and everything that he was afraid to lose.

One particular evening, Sousuke had planned to drive them into the city. He wasn’t sure what the festival was for, only that he wanted to go with his boyfriend so that they could both enjoy the crowd and, more importantly, the fireworks at the end. Momo was more than excited, even donning a yukata that he pulled from nowhere. It was the same cheery orange as his hair, tied with a sky blue sash that made him look like he was swathed in pure sunshine.

After they arrived, Sousuke wasted no time grabbing onto Momo’s hand. Even if people saw them, they would just assume that it was so they weren’t separated. The couple wasn’t from the city regardless, so the gossip wouldn’t follow them back to Iwatobi.

The festival atmosphere was exactly what Sousuke had wanted. The bustling crowd excited Momo and Sousuke felt comfortable showing off at the booths for his boyfriend. Momo almost couldn’t carry all the toys and things that Sousuke had won for him, so they ended up circling back to the car once before the fireworks began.

The weird fifth grade teacher had mentioned a good, secluded spot so that they could be alone to see the fireworks. The path was up by a large knotted tree, though Momo protested when Sousuke drug him off in the opposite direction.

“Oi, Sousuke! Where are we going? The fireworks are back that way! I heard they have some shaped like beetles and I wanna be able to see them!” Momo resisted, even though he followed.

“Trust me,” Sousuke pleaded. “I heard there’s a special place here where we can be alone. I want to savor this moment with just the two of us.” Why were his palms so sweaty? It was just some fireworks.

“Fine.” Momo huffed. “But if we miss the stags I’m going to be really mad!”

Sousuke grinned. “We won’t miss them, Momo. Come on.” He wrapped his arm around Momo’s shoulder, pulling him up the large hill to a small bench that was totally out of the way. The most beautiful part was that the trees cleared so that they could see the entire festival from the seats. The gentle lantern lights twinkled like stars in the distance. Sousuke wasn’t sure how, but he would definitely have to make it up to Kisumi.

“How did you find this place?” Momo was starry eyed, barely able to contain himself at the beautiful spectacle.

“I heard about it from a friend.” Sousuke boasted. “I’m glad I could be here with you.” He leaned back against the bench and pulled Momo closer to his side.

“Me too.” Momo did that smolder thing that made Sousuke’s heart lurch. He couldn’t help kiss him, almost wanting to throw him down right there and go at it under the light of the fireworks. Since that first day, they hadn’t fooled around at all. Sousuke was waiting for the perfect moment, but that was not it.

“Wait,” Momo panted. “They’re starting!” A thin arm pointed up to the sky as the first flower exploded in the atmosphere. All over the sky, blue and green, red and yellow, purple and pink, orange and teal, the fireworks were absolutely gorgeous. The only thing that could possibly have distracted him was Momo.

The glow in his eyes and the smile that graced his face had Sousuke practically tripping over himself. He wasn’t sure when got in so deep, but he was sure he didn’t want out.

“Momo,” he swallowed. “We’ve known each other for a long time, right?”

“It’s been about a year and a half or so, yeah.” Momo didn’t look away from the fireworks, oohing and ahhing the whole time. “What’s up?”

“I think I’m in love with you.” Sousuke admitted as the prophesized beetle firework lit up the sky. Momo completely missed it, eyes boring a hole into Sousuke’s.

“What did you just say?” Momo stopped breathing, sure he hadn’t heard that correctly.

Sousuke couldn’t help himself any longer. “I love you, I want to see you every day for the rest of my life.” He tossed his arms around Momo’s midsection. “I love you.”

“Sousuke, I…” Momo trailed off, teary eyed. “I’ve loved you for a long time. I think I fell for you when we first met.”

“You probably had to, I mean, we fucked in the bathroom. Can’t beat that.” Sousuke joked, a little teary eyed himself. There was no harsh refusal or drink in his face this time, just a beam of sunshine that he would never let go.

“H-hey! Don’t talk about that! I can’t believe that even happened, it was… my first time.” Momo admitted, totally catching Sousuke off-guard.

“What? But you’re like twenty-seven! How was it your first time?” Sousuke was in shock and disbelief, but at the same time he was a little excited that he had been the first to deflower his lover.

“No one bothered before you.” Momo was probably crying a little at this point, though he wasn’t sure if it was from relief or confessing that no one had ever loved him before.

Sousuke squeezed Momo even tighter. “Let me say it again, Momotarou Mikoshiba, I love you. I love everything about you and I never want you to be away from me.” When he realized that Momo was crying, Sousuke kissed him hard and fast, like the day they had met. It was painful for both of them when their teeth collided, but they wanted nothing more than each other.

“Momo, stay at my place tonight.” Sousuke prompted him, though Momo would know full well what the implications of that would be.

“Please, I would love to.” Momo latched on to him again. “I love you.”

It was the longest drive that Sousuke had ever experienced. He was nearly tempted to toss Momo down in the backseat and take care of business before they ever left the city. There were children around though, and he wouldn’t subject them to that. Sousuke knew there was a bed waiting for them anyway.

By the time they rolled up at the door, they were clawing at each other. Before the door had clicked shut, the two were a pile of hands and mouths, and then they were naked and in bed and in sheer ecstasy. There was nothing left for either of them to say, except one more “I love you” as they drifted off to sleep in each other’s arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Suuuper sorry that it took me so long to update! I got strep and was sick for like two weeks ;;
> 
> Anyway, it was requested that I write some more Soumomo and also I was bitter about being sick for two weeks, so here is the product of that. Sort of fillery, but this chapter was super fluff.


	15. Scarlet Letters and Blue Feelings

After suffering for a few more days, Makoto finally recovered from his cold. It was only particularly laborious when Makoto had to suck it up after the first day and return to school. As much as he wanted to take more time off, it just wasn’t feasible. The students had a break coming up anyway, which Makoto had earmarked for their big move from their tiny apartment to Haru’s grand family manor.

In the interim, Haru was busy steeling himself for the case with the hearing over the restraining order. After lunch, Makoto was going to meet him at the small courthouse and they would begin the hearing. He was hoping that Gou wouldn’t show up and that there would be no contest. Five years was a long time to go without having to worry about someone looking over your shoulder all the time.

The ride was strenuous and Haru contemplated skipping it altogether. He had never functioned particularly well under pressure, going so far as to give into the demands from his peers that he attend university, then marry a woman he didn’t care about because of an idiotic mistake he’d made. Despite all of that, he’d been happy for a measured amount of time, even when he did give up his dream. If only the water gave Haru the same feeling of peace that it once had…

The courthouse stood out amongst the other buildings around it. While the town was more or less family homes, the courthouse was a large sterile brown brick building that stood out like a sentinel. If Makoto hadn’t already been standing in front of the doors, Haru wouldn’t have gotten out of his minivan.

With a shaky breath, Haru pushed open the door and grabbed the papers off the seat. He approached Makoto with a bit of hesitation. He was glad that his boyfriend was here to support him, but would Gou use that against him in the case? It was much more acceptable for two men to be together than it had been, but there was still a lot of unrest. Haru wanted to kick himself for being an asshole and telling Gou that they were dating before they’d even started.

“Hey Haru.” Makoto gave him that sort of crooked grin, where the right side of his mouth raised just a little more than his left. He had a little bit of a boyish charm that Haru envied. In a sense, Makoto seemed to have just the right kind of naivety that Haru had lost along the way. The only thing that Haru could think would stain it was Makoto’s sketchy past. The man had some deep-rooted trauma regarding his ex that Haru didn’t know about. Had they divorced? Was she abusive? Was she… dead?

These questions all circled around in Haru’s mind as they mounted the small, grey steps to the foyer. The kind woman at the desk led them over to a small chamber where an official had yet to appear. The air of the room was very official. There were numerous brown benches lined up before a large stand for the judge. It was very much a watered-down version what would appear on TV.

The kids were safely at school, Haru told himself. She wouldn’t be able to get to them there. Despite his mixed feelings about the man, Haru knew that Sousuke wouldn’t let anything happen to Rin or Rei.

The clerk took his papers and puttered off, leaving him alone with Makoto. “Haru, it’ll be okay. I’m sure that whatever the outcome is, we can handle it.” Makoto reached across the wooden bench and sat his hand over Haru’s.

“I,” he exhaled. “I’ve never been this scared, Makoto.” Haru’s jaw tensed and he balled his hand into a fist under Makoto’s. “If we don’t win this, I’ll have to leave Iwatobi. I can’t have Gou hanging around the kids anymore. I don’t want her to hurt them or you or your kids, especially your kids. She shouldn’t fuck up anyone’s kids, not any more than she already has.”

“Haru,” Makoto sighed a bit. “Your kids aren’t,” he hesitated to use the F-word at all, even around other adults. “Fucked up. Rin and Rei are great, amazing, bright kids. If they have any trauma from what happened with Gou, then you have done an outstanding job minimizing it. It’s only been a short while, but Rei has the highest grades in the class and he’s even been helping Nagisa do better. I could never get Nagisa to do any homework and the teacher is his dad.” Makoto lectured Haru, taking great lengths to prove to him that his fears were moot.

“Rin brought Ai out of his shell too. Before I met you, we were sort of listlessly drifting along, Haru. It had been a long few years that had taken a toll on my ability to do really anything out of the ordinary.” Makoto was choking up a bit at that point. “You have nothing to be afraid of. I’m not going anywhere, I promise.” Haru looked up to see a bit of a mist in Makoto’s eyes. If the door hadn’t opened in the back of the chamber, Haru would’ve kissed him.

Of course, their moment ended the moment Haru saw even the smallest flash of that maroon hair. She sauntered in like she owned the place, though she didn’t say a word as she sat as far away from the two men as possible. It was a tense few minutes. Haru wanted to yell, but knew that he would only be removed. Makoto was the only thing preventing him from having a full-force anxiety attack.

Finally, the judge came into the room. She was a stern looking brunette with hard blue eyes that fell onto Haru and then onto Gou, lastly flicking across Makoto.

“We are here today for a request filed by Haruka Nanase against one Kou Matsuoka regarding a restraining order.” She read off the sheet in front of her. “Will the parties both stand and approach me.”

Haru reluctantly left Makoto’s side, squeezing his hand tight one last time before he approached the officiator. “It says here that you are requesting the longest sentence of five years, Miss Nanase.” Her eyes bored a hole into Gou.

“That is me.” Haru said plainly. “I am Haruka Nanase.” Her eyebrow seemed to flick up for the briefest instance only to return to her hardened expression. If that was a semblance of surprise, Haru wasn’t sure.

“Then we will look over the dispute and I will determine how to move forward. Please be seated.” She pulled out the claim that Haru had filed. “It says here that the other party has been abusive both physically and mentally and that they have trespassed on private property after being told to leave numerous times. The form also lists child endangerment as an offense.”

Gou scoffed. Loudly.

“Excuse me, Ma’am. If you would like to clear your throat, please exit the room and do so.” The judge held the page down, looking markedly less amused than she had a moment before.

“Sorry,” she muttered.

“Would you like to give a statement regarding these claims, Mr. Nanase?” She asked, clearly not having whatever shit Gou was trying to give her. On the one hand, it made Haru feel comfortable that the judge was being sort of objective, but on the other hand there was nothing stopping her from turning that back onto Haru.

“I would.” Haru cleared his throat. “For the last few years, I’ve been constantly moving to keep our children away from her. It was decided four years ago in a court that I would have full custody of both kids because of what she’d done. Recently, though, she has been trying to come around the kids at their expense. They’ve told me numerous times that they didn’t want to see her.” Haru explained, though actually having to vocalize it felt like he was losing control over his grief. He was afraid that even after hearing his complaints, he would still lose the case.

“And why is it that they don’t want to see their mother?” She countered, turning it back onto him.

“Because when she first cheated before we separated, she told the kids that I didn’t love them and that I wasn’t coming back for them.” Haru had to suppress the anger that welled up in his gut. “It took me so long to make sure they knew that I loved them more than anything in this world. They’re all I have.”

From his seat, Makoto frowned at the back of Haru’s head. He was approximately aware of everything that had happened, but it was the first time he’d heard Haru speak about it quite so candidly. Of course, Makoto realized that this was really it for him. If Haru won this case, they wouldn’t have to worry about Gou for five entire years. It made Makoto a little excited to think that Haru planned on them being together even five years from now.

“Is that all you have to say for your side?” One more time for Haru to cement his victory.

“The reason that I won full custody over the kids was because Gou was neglecting the kids. She wouldn’t pick them up from school on time or from daycare. I didn’t want them around the house when I couldn’t be there as well because they told me she brought men over. I never wanted to hear them tell me that they hated their mother, but a six year old and a five year old told me, in no uncertain terms, that they didn’t want to see their mother ever again.” Haru wasn’t sure what to do when Gou stood.

“Liar!” She shouted. “How could you say that the kids hate me? I am their mother.” The gavel banging caused everyone else in the room to jump a little.

“Again, ma’am. If you have another outburst like that, I will have the bailiff escort you from the premises.” The judge rebuked. “And just because you are their mother does _not_ give you the right to treat them however you please. He is just as much a parent as you are, so don’t think that you get special treatment just because you are the mother.” She sat the gavel down. “Do you have anything you would like to say in defense of these allegations?”

Gou stepped by Haru as he returned to his seat, trying to nail him in the toe with the heel of her shoe. “Your honor, I have not performed any of these gross acts of negligence that I have been accused of.” It seemed like she was putting on a sweet face for the judge. “I would never tell my children such ridiculous lies and then bring men to our home in front of them. Plus I’m getting remarried, and don’t you think that the children should have a nuclear family to return home to every day?”

Haru froze. “I would like to remind you that this is a case for a restraining order. I am not ruling to change any custody rights.”

“My apologies. That is all I have to say on the matter, your honor.” Gou turned on her heel, a smug look on her face, and returned to her seat. Makoto reached over and patted Haru on the shoulder, in a meek attempt to console him. Haru was a million miles away, however, still trying to process the fact that someone quite so horrible could be getting remarried.

The judge picked up a few papers and then brought her eyes up to Makoto. “I will now take witness testimony. Please approach the bench.” Makoto sighed and quickly padded up, a bit wary of the maroon eyes that stared daggers at him. “Now, please tell me your position. Am I to understand that you’re a teacher at a local elementary school?”

“I am,” he choked out. “I teach third grade at Iwatobi elementary school. In my sort of short experience with Haru and his family, I have to say that he is an amazing father. His son, Rei, is in my class and he has the highest grades and is one of the brightest kids I’ve ever had the pleasure of teaching. He even helps my own son do better.” Makoto made a poor attempt at humor to try to lighten the room. “I’ve only met Gou one time other than right now, but during that brief instance, she made impolite remarks towards Haru and attempted to slap him. However, I was quick enough to intervene, but I was the one that took the blow.”

“Do you have any evidence to corroborate this story?” The judge probed, clearly taking Makoto more serious than the other two.

“I do, actually.” Makoto reached into his pocket. “When I got home, I took a picture of the mark on my phone.” He took a step forward and handed the small device over to the slightly wrinkled hand.

“I see.” She cooed, handing Makoto back the phone. “In light of the overwhelming evidence that has been placed before me, including court documents regarding the full custody of one Rei and one Rin Nanase to their father, Haruka Nanase, I have to order that the full restraining order be placed on Gou Matsuoka for five years, at which time the case will be reviewed and the order will be extended or removed.”

Haru exhaled sharply, covering his face in an attempt to hide the tears that slowly ran down his face. “The party of the accused is not to come within five hundred feet of Haruka Nanase, Rei Nanase, Rin Nanase, Makoto Tachibana, Aiichirou Tachibana, or Nagisa Tachibana. The order is also for the home address and for whatever schools the children may attend for the duration that this in place.” She reached down to bang her gavel. “Dismissed.”

Makoto raised any eyebrow, about to question why he was part of the order, but then everything went to hell. Gou began shouting and rushed towards Haru with her fists drawn. Makoto, using his paternal instincts, immediately rushed over, flipping a bench out of the way. Breathing heavily, the large man imposed himself between the exes.

“Enough.” Makoto spat. “You have done nothing but torment Haru since they day I met him. If you really cared about your kids, you would be willing to compromise for them. Do you know what my kids would do for a mother? Do you know what I would do to still have my wife be standing next to me?” Maybe Makoto didn’t realize what he was saying, but the heat of the moment caused a rage that he had never felt to explode out of him. “You are the worst excuse for a human being, let alone a mother, that I have ever had the misfortune to encounter.”

“Makoto,” Haru reached up and grabbed his wrist. “That’s enough. You’ve done more than enough.”

“Bailiff, please remove this woman from the building.” The judge called. Suddenly, the large man, bigger than Makoto, who had been lurking in the corner of the room sprang forward. He picked up the table that Makoto had carelessly tossed away and moved over to grab Gou by her shoulders. In the next moment, Makoto wasn’t sure he’d ever heard a stream of curses as complete and unrelenting as that.

“Bye.” Haru swallowed, still fighting against the tears.

The events that followed seemed surreal to Haru. Papers exchanged hands and were signed, and when the two men left, they rested easy knowing that the law was on their side.

Haru went back to the house with a weight lifted from his shoulders while Makoto picked the kids up. Stepping inside of his house, which finally felt like a home for the first time in years, Haru felt nothing more than a feeling that could be described with a single word.

Free.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy birthday, Haru? 
> 
> Anyway, I have no idea how an actual judge acts. I researched what happens during a case for a restraining order, but I loosely based the judge off of Judge Judy because the only one that can judge me is Judy.
> 
> The next chapter will probably be cute in the beginning and then pain at the end maybe? I'm going to level with you guys I literally don't know what's going to happen next until I sit down and start writing it lol. Thanks for reading <3


	16. Moving On and Sugar Daddies

With light hearts, the two fathers finally came into some vacation time. Their relationship had changed very drastically as time wore on, and things were looking up as they entered the third month. Haru was freed from the drama with his ex and had been surprisingly open with Makoto as a result. They had begun to consort just a bit when the kids didn’t want to sleep with them, though they hadn’t done more than kissing or just letting their hands wander a bit.

Moving day finally rolled up. As excited as Makoto was, the kids were even more so. Nagisa and Rin were bouncing off the walls when Sousuke and Momo arrived. Makoto, knowing his friend was a big guy, had asked if he would help and Momo answered for them. Makoto couldn’t be sure without flat out asking, but it seemed like the two of them had moved in together as well.

“You guys go, I can watch the tykes for you.” Momo offered through a toothy grin, plopping down on the couch next to an excited looking Rin. Knowing Momo’s penchant for silly things, it was likely that he would just play video games with the kids until they were finished moving.

Even still, Makoto was relieved. “Ah, great! Haru rented a moving van for the day, so we have to do it all at once, but I really appreciate all the help. I’m sure we can get it all done if we try our hardest.” Makoto smiled, picking up the boxes he’d purchased in preparation.

“Makoto, you can cut the teacher shtick. It’s moving day and we aren’t a bunch of eight year olds trying to do a worksheet.” Sousuke rolled his eyes, souring Makoto’s mood a little. Perhaps Sousuke didn’t quite understand how much the situation meant to Makoto. The quality of his and his kids’ lives had just increased dramatically and he was happier than he could have ever been.

“I don’t think there’s anything wrong with being positive, Sou.” Makoto rebutted, turning his nose up at the callous disregard of his boundless optimism. “I think Nagisa and Ai should come with us for the first load, that way we can make sure that we don’t miss any of their toys.”

Nagisa, wide-eyed, ran right up to Haru and grabbed his hand. “Yay! We’ll be back soon, Reirei! I’ll bring all my toys and we can play all day for the rest of vacation!” Rei smiled a bit, mirroring the look that his father was giving him.

“Let’s get on with it, then.” Haru pulled the keys out of his pocket. Makoto hefted the boxes out to the moving truck and squished into the cab with Haru and his sons. It was a bit of a tight squeeze considering the bench seat was probably not built for two adult men and two children. However, Makoto was determined to get them all in, so he plopped Ai and Nagisa in between himself and Haru and they left.

“I’m really happy we’re moving, Daddy.” Ai giggled. “I was afraid to be in my own room, but Rin told me that we were big boys now and I think I want to do it on my own.” He furrowed his eyebrows in a comical look of determination. Makoto chuckled a bit and ruffled Ai’s hair, thankful that he was getting on better.

“You should thank Haru, he’s the one that invited us to live with him.” Makoto pointed out, tossing his arm up on the back of the bench seat so he could tickle the side of Haru’s neck.

“Do you want to get into an accident?” Haru laughed low and deep in his throat, batting Makoto’s hand away. “And you don’t need to thank me. I did it because I wanted your dad all to myself.”

“H-Haru! What are you saying?” Makoto blushed fiercely, pulling his hand back. Why would Haru have said something like that in front of the kids? Makoto was under the impression that they’d decided to not tell the kids.

“Makoto, they’re going to find out sooner or later.” Haru scolded. “I mean, we share a bed for Christ’s sake. Don’t you think it would be better for us to tell them ourselves?” Much to Makoto’s chagrin, Haru had a valid point, glaring at Makoto a bit in the rearview mirror. Of course, Haru was probably right, but Makoto was nervous about the reactions from his kids.

“What are you talking about, Daddy?” Nagisa asked. “Is it the thing that Rin told me—” His eyebrows went up and his mouth slammed shut. Makoto was even more mortified that Rin had blabbed and told Nagisa that they had kissed.

Haru sighed. “Damn it, Rin.” The cab was silent for a moment after that.

“Watch your language, Haru.” Makoto scolded him, prompting Nagisa to laugh a bit, despite his prior admission. “And I guess if you think we should, then we’ll tell them.” He conceded, still hesitant.

“Tell us what?” Ai prompted, giving Makoto a nervous look.

“It’s nothing bad, Ai. It’s just that,” he turned away. “Me and Haru are together, like, uh, Ariel and Eric.” Makoto tensed, waiting for a negative reaction from Ai. Between the two kids, he was the one that was more likely to dissent. He didn’t even notice the small laugh that Haru loosed upon hearing Makoto’s example.

“Oh.” Ai looked out the window for a second, as if he was processing what he’d just been told. “Does that mean that you two want to be together?” His turquoise eyes came up to meet his dad’s.

“Yes, I think we’re really happy together, actually.” Makoto looked over to Haru to confirm it and was pleased to see a gentle smile on his face.

“Yay! I’ll get to play with Reirei forever!” Nagisa tossed his hands up, nearly hitting Ai in the face.

“Naggy!” He complained, pushing his arm back down. “Watch out!” He pouted. Makoto tried not to laugh, but he was frankly just glad that there was no strong backlash from his kids. Nothing had changed. The earth didn’t even open up and swallow them like Makoto had expected.

“I’m a little sad for Mommy.” Ai said eventually. “But I’m glad you’re happy, Daddy, and I like Haru, so I’m okay with it.” He grinned a bit, making Makoto’s heart drop. The large man quickly turned his gaze out the window so that they couldn’t see the tears that sparkled in the corners of his eyes. If his own son approved, the one he’d held so many nights when he cried, did that mean that it was really okay for Makoto to move on? Would she be okay with him finding happiness again?

Haru sighed. “I had been planning on giving them to you guys later, but this seems like a good a time as any.” He pulled a hand off the steering wheel and reached into his pocket. A fist came over to Makoto and deposited three little pieces of metal into his boyfriend’s hand.

“Keys?” Makoto asked, looking at the green, pink, and blue shards. They were a bit cold in his hand and kind of reminded him of giving Haru the key to his apartment.

“Yes. I even asked Nagisa and Ai what color they wanted beforehand.” Haru pointed out, turning into the drive for the apartment. “Since the lease is broken, I know you have to give up your apartment keys. I wanted to make sure you didn’t have an empty spot on your keyring.” Makoto was sort of touched that Haru had not only taken him into consideration, but also Nagisa and Ai.

“You two should kiss!” Nagisa shouted. Makoto gasped, flushing red immediately.

“N-Nagisa! What are you talking about?” Ai shouted, watching Makoto paw at the door handle so he could get out before Nagisa said something even worse. However, Haru was quick on the draw and pushed lock button.

“I wouldn’t be opposed to it, actually.” Haru shrugged, leaning across Nagisa and Ai to get closer to Makoto.

“Huh?” The father and son said in unison, they glanced at each other a bit.

“What are you doing? The kids are right there!” Makoto complained, mortified when the kids laughed and moved out of the way so that Haru was right next to him. He thought Ai had his back, but it looked like he was wrong. Pinned back against the door, Makoto had to suffer with the embarrassment of letting Haru kiss him in front of his kids.

“That wasn’t so bad, was it?” Haru chuckled darkly, taking a bit of a twisted pleasure in how red he made Makoto.

“Y-you shouldn’t kiss someone unless they give you permission.” Makoto scolded his boyfriend, bringing his hand up to cover his mouth, like that would keep his kids from laughing at him.

Thankfully, Sousuke knocked on the window behind Makoto, eyebrow raised in confusion. “What the hell are you two doing in there?” It probably did look like they were in a compromising position from the outside.

Makoto wanted to lock himself in the bathroom and never come out when they finally got inside. Unfortunately, he had to run into his closet and pack up all his clothes. The kids were in their room putting everything they could lift into a box as per Makoto’s order.

As Makoto went through his clothing, he noticed a few shirts that he’d forgotten he had. His jaw clenched as he picked up the small women’s shirts. He placed them in the bottom of the box, hiding them under his own clothing. Stuck underneath her clothes, the photograph that had been placed on his nightstand before Haru had moved in peeked up at him.

The four of them were in the hospital, the day that Nagisa was born. Makoto held Ai up while she held Nagisa in her slender arms, smiling sweetly. She always wore the hospital robes like they were the most expensive dress she could get her hands on. Her eyes sparkled as she looked down at her sons and husband. Makoto wished he could recapture the serene happiness he’d felt in that moment.

“Oh, Chigusa. What would you think of me now? Would you be happy for me and Haru?” He ran a finger across her face in the picture, completely unaware that Haru was standing outside of the closet with his hand over his mouth. Haru was at a loss for words, so he sped away before he scared Makoto.

Makoto sighed, wrapping the photograph that made his heart ache in a shirt and sticking it down in the box. His closet was finally empty and that was the majority of his belongings. Makoto thoughtfully packed all of the novels that Haru had gotten him away with Ai’s books. After that, he really couldn’t think of anything else that would need to be packed.

“The truck has your furniture in it, so we’ll have to make another trip for your clothing and stuff.” Sousuke said, tossing the door open. “Do you two want to wait here? I’ll take the kids back with me and make Momo help me unload it all.” Sousuke offered, having become surprisingly comfortable with Makoto and Haru’s relationship.

“That works.” Haru answered, handing Sousuke a key. “There should be an empty room to the right of the foyer; you can put all of Makoto’s furniture in there.”

“Right.” He nodded. “Let’s go, rugrats! I’ve got a hot date waiting for me after this and I don’t want to be late.” The kids padded on out the door, waving bye to their dad.

Makoto thought it was a bit strange to be in the apartment without any furniture. The open room reminded him of how hopeful he was when he first moved in. He’d actually let his kids pick the apartment they liked the most from a list that Makoto had made. Of course, they had picked the more expensive one, but Makoto didn’t mind. In fact, he had been planning on that place from the very beginning.

“You know, I’ve said it before, but I want to tell you again.” Makoto grabbed Haru’s hand and pulled it up to his chest. “Thank you.”

Haru’s gaze fell to the floor and then back up to Makoto’s. “No, thank you. There was actually something I wanted to ask you.” Haru smiled. “Will you be my boyfriend? We sort of declared it, but I never asked. I want to go out on a date with you.”

Makoto flushed again. “Y-yes. I want to be with you, Haru, and I want to go out on a date with you.” He sighed, feeling embarrassed that he had to say it out loud. “As long as you don’t take me to a ritzy restaurant in the city and then try to shove your tongue down my throat in the car.”

Haru’s expression flattened. “Get your mail before we leave.” Of course he would change the subject. Makoto wasn’t even sure why he would bring up the date with Kisumi. That was just stupid of him. Makoto didn’t want to think about it and he didn’t want Haru to be bitter about the mean things that he’d done.

“Right, I will.” Makoto headed out of the room and down to the mailbox. Makoto stuck the key in and was surprised at the torrent of mail that poured out. Some of the letters were coupons which he had very gratefully used before, but there was one small green slip inside.

Makoto slid his thumb under the flap and tore the envelope open. Reading down the expensive looking cardstock, he was excited to see that it was an invitation to his younger brother’s wedding. Unfortunately, the date was scheduled for next week and it would be impossible for him to attend, especially considering time and money. Makoto hoped that Ren would understand.

“What is that?” Haru asked, stepping around the corner to see what was taking Makoto so long.

“It’s an invitation to my brother’s wedding. It says that he’s getting married to the daughter of a rich company owner in the city.” Makoto was a bit sad, actually. Ren had never had a penchant for dating, though his siblings were a good six years younger than he was. The older brother just wished he could’ve been around to watch his Ren fall in love with someone. Too sweet.

“When is it? I wouldn’t mind going.” Haru was surprisingly agreeable. How had Makoto gotten so lucky? He was so grateful for finding someone so understanding.

“It’s next week, but I don’t really have the money to go up to Ikuno right now.” Makoto sighed, wishing he could take Ai and Nagisa to see their grandparents and aunt and uncle. Being home just brought up memories of her and that was why he hadn’t been back in so long.

“I’ll pay. I want to meet your family and now is as good a time as any.” Haru shrugged, like it was perfectly acceptable to drop thousands of dollars at once to travel halfway across the country.

“Haru, I can’t let you spend that much money. It just isn’t a good idea.” Makoto resisted. Haru had seriously done more than Makoto could even think would be acceptable for a partner. It was coming to the point where Haru was really just sugar daddying him

“Why not? My parents could be anywhere in the world right now and the rest of my family died years ago.” Haru walked over and took the invitation out of Makoto’s hand. “I want to be part of your family, Makoto. I want you to be part of mine as well.”

Makoto shook his head. “How can I say no when you put it like that? You have far too much power over me, Haru.” The teacher had found Haru enchanting from the very beginning, and he was already fully under his spell.

“I’ll start looking for flights, unless you want to take a road trip instead? We’ll have to leave a few days before the wedding to get there in time. Hell, let’s make it into a family vacation. We can invite Sousou and Momo to come along too, if you’d like.” Haru wrapped his hands around Makoto’s neck, leaning up on his tiptoes to whisper in the taller man’s ear. “It’ll be our first trip as a couple, Makoto.”

“Haru.” Makoto whined, letting one of the letters slip out of his hand. “You’re doing too much. I’ll never be able to pay you back for any of this. I feel like I’m taking advantage of your kindness.”

“I don’t think it’s too much if I want to do it, Makoto.” Haru pulled back and grabbed the letter off the ground. “And believe me, I want to do _it_.” He slipped the letter back into Makoto’s hand and then turned on his heel, giving Makoto a moment to process what he meant by ‘it’.

“H-Haru! We’re in public, don’t say things like that!” Makoto shouted, pounding down the sidewalk to catch up with his boyfriend.

“I was talking about vacationing, but if you’re talking about sex, I wouldn’t mind if it was you.” Haru tried to play it off so Makoto could sweat out being the one with elicit intentions, even though that was completely what he meant.

“Stop! Sousuke could be back any minute and I don’t think he wants to hear us talking about _that_.” Makoto shuddered, thinking about what he would tell Momo about the two of them.

“And I should care why? Do you think that he hasn’t done it with the redheaded guy? They’re doing it every night, guaranteed.” Haru spat, pushing the door to the apartment back open. “I’m not going to pressure you into it, but food for thought. I know you secretly think you’re better than Sousuke is.”

Makoto opened his mouth to object, but Haru was probably right on some level. He envied Sousuke for his ability to bond with Momo so easily, but simultaneously thought less of him for his one night stand. It was rude of him, he realized.

“Having sex won’t make you a bad person, Makoto.” Haru shrugged, sitting on the box full of books. It was surprisingly rigid, though the top did sink down an inch or so. “Anyway, let’s drop it for now. I don’t want you to feel the need to do something you’re not ready for.”

Makoto dropped the mail into the box with his clothes and leaned against the wall. “I don’t think I’m ready, you’re right, but I don’t want you to think that I’m pulling away or that I don’t still like you, Haru. I really do feel something for you, I just…” Makoto started to blush again. “What if I don’t do a good job? It’s been a long time since I did anything like that and I don’t want to disappoint you.”

Haru laughed loudly, startling Makoto who had only heard small chuckles or grunting up to that point. “Makoto, I wouldn’t be disappointed. When is the last time you think I’ve done it? I was a single father of two children that was constantly running from his ex. I wasn’t exactly the most open to even speaking to anyone, let alone inviting them into my bedroom.”

Makoto made a little whiny sound in his throat. “I guess we’ll talk about it, then.” He shook his head. “Later, when Sousuke isn’t about to show up. This isn’t going to be like that romance novel you got me where we talk about it once and then I throw you down and go at it.”

Haru stared at him blankly for a second and then turned red. “I didn’t… buy you one like that, did I?” He’d meticulously read through the covers when he was in the store, making sure that none of them would allude to the secret crush that he was harboring for Makoto.

“There was one, right before you confessed. It was the last book you gave me before we stopped talking, actually. I knew I really wanted to read it, but I didn’t know that it was harlequin romance novel until afterwards.” Makoto blushed. “I actually thought the reason you finally got me that one was because you were trying to hint to me before you confessed. That’s… embarrassing.”

Haru closed his eyes. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you feel uncomfortable. I wasn’t even going to say anything until you started yelling at me for Nagisa’s birthday present. I was considering it my departing gift.”

Before Nagisa’s birthday, he had been planning on moving to an apartment across town until he could work out another part of the country to move to. It was only after seeing how darkly Makoto reacted, how he broke down when Haru mentioned his wife, that Haru realized he couldn’t leave him alone. Makoto had done so much for him, and all he could do to repay that was to love him… and support him financially. It made Makoto happy, and that was all Haru wanted.

“There’s actually something I wanted to ask you, Makoto.” Haru stood, pacing towards him slowly. “I don’t want you to get upset, but will you tell me something?”

Makoto’s jaw tensed at the sudden change in the room. “What is it?”

Haru swallowed thickly and braced himself. “What was her name, your wife?”

Makoto froze. Not this again, he told himself. “Haru, I…” he tensed his jaw again, letting his hands ball at his sides. Haru was going to find out everything that had happened eventually, so perhaps it was time for Makoto to start letting some of it go. “Chigusa, her name was Chigusa Hanamura.”

Haru reached out and grabbed Makoto’s shaking hands. “That’s all. You don’t have to tell me anything more right now.” Haru leaned forward and kissed him quickly, attempting to assuage whatever Makoto was feeling in that moment.

“Are you two seriously making out? I was only gone for twenty minutes!” Sousuke stood in the door with a look of disgust on his face. “If you were going to start dating, you could’ve let me in on it, Makoto. I’m not blind.”

Makoto jumped, pushing Haru away a good foot. “Sousuke! We, uh, weren’t doing anything!”

Haru gave Makoto a dirty look. “He’s my boyfriend now. You don’t have to worry about me fucking with him anymore.” Haru turned his glare onto Sousuke. “At least not how you meant it.”

“Haru!” Makoto shouted, running to the backroom.

“It’s okay if you’re gay, Makoto!” Sousuke called after him. “God knows that half the people around here are.” Seriously, it had to have been something in the water.

Makoto took one last look out of the window in his bedroom, before going back to the main room. “How about we get this on the road? We have a lot to talk about tonight.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so this chapter ended up being like 1000 words longer than they normally are. I'm not promising that this is going to be an every week occurrence, the chapter just needed it. 
> 
> Anyhoo, I just dropped Makoto's wife's name like it was the hottest album of the year. I think we're getting into Makoto's tragic anime backstory more now. I'm excited to show you guys what I have in store for their vacation and Makoto's brother! I hope you guys have enjoyed the fic up 'til now!
> 
> Thanks for reading! <3


	17. Dirty Towels and Evil Queens

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HELLO FRIENDS THE FIRST THOUSAND OR SO WORDS OF THIS CHAPTER ARE SEXY PARTS SO IF YOU WANT TO SKIP THEM YOU CAN!! THIS HAS BEEN A WARNING!!

Despite how well it had gone with Nagisa and Ai, Makoto was still nervous to tell Haru’s children. They had been through marginally more than his kids, so he was petrified thinking they’d reject him. Parked on the couch, the two little boys looked on with wide eyes as they realized that Makoto would, in fact, be staying for much longer than they would’ve suspected. In an instant, Rin was in the man’s lap and Rei was grabbing for his hand. Makoto wouldn’t admit it outside of the home, but he did cry just a bit.

After that, they’d fallen back into making dinner. Boxes were dragged upstairs as Haru helped Makoto hang all of his clothing and divvy up what belonged to Nagisa and what belonged to Ai. By the time they were done organizing, it was well into the middle of the night. Makoto fell into bed, Haru hot on his heels.

Without missing a beat, Haru pulled the blanket over and rolled into Makoto’s chest. “W-what are you doing?” Makoto protested, trying to put some distance between them in vain.

“I was _trying_ to cuddle, but if you don’t want to, I won’t.” Haru complained, sighing as he moved back into his side of the bed. Makoto’s arm shot out, grabbing onto his boyfriend’s forearm to drag him back.

“Sorry, you know I’m still getting used to all of this.” Makoto pointed out, wrapping his arm firmly in place around Haru’s shoulders. “I’ve been thinking about it all night, y’know? When I wake up in the morning, this will really be my home. No more ‘let’s run down the street to the apartment and get clothes for the kids’. This is it.” He was starting to tear up again. When had so many positive things happened?

Haru laughed, short and quick, just enough to make Makoto’s heart lurch. “You know what else? This isn’t just yours. This is our home, our room, our bed, and our family. We’re only here because of you.” In the faint glow of the clock light, Makoto could barely make out the shimmery blue eyes that stared up into his.

“That’s not true, we’re here because of you.” Makoto grumbled. “I’m still sorry about the thing with Kisumi. I didn’t mean for it to be such a low blow, but it was.” Makoto put his hand onto Haru’s hip, making sure that they were fully touching. “I never want to see you make a face like that again, Haru.”

“I don’t want you to be with anyone else, Makoto.” He closed the gap, gently pressing his lips into Makoto’s. They sat there like that for a moment before Makoto traced his hand up Haru’s side, then slipped it under his shirt. “What are you doing?”

Haru’s hand came down on top of Makoto’s, only blocked by the thin fabric of his shirt. “I wanted to touch your chest. I envy your muscles.” Makoto replied sheepishly. “I’ll stop if you want me to.”

“Don’t.” Haru exhaled, then dove back into Makoto’s mouth. It was as awkward as ever. Makoto still wasn’t sure how to kiss someone and Haru wasn’t particularly sure that he could teach him. Their teeth clacked, lips smacking lewdly in the dark.

The larger man allowed his hands to travel up farther on Haru’s chest, mapping his palms across the rise and fall of his skin. Somehow, Haru was warm and smooth, but still slightly tight as each muscle contracted. In an unexpected turn, Haru tossed the blanket aside and slipped onto Makoto’s legs.

He discarded his shirt quickly, moving down to pull off his shorts. “Tell me to stop or I’ll keep going.”

Makoto was breathing a bit heavily and hardening in all the right places at the delicious tactile pleasure. He said nothing as Haru tugged the waistband of his pants down. He was nervous, but feeling it. How could he say no now? The man was acutely aware of the hand that reached down and sprung him free of his boxers. He was glad the light from the clock wasn’t enough to see exactly what Haru was doing. Makoto was sure he felt something for Haru, but not certain if he was ready to see all that Haru offered.

The hand that worked slowly down his length made his back arch and his hands claw at the bedcover. “H-Haru…” That was when he felt something else press against him, rigid and hot. Haru began slowly rocking into him, hand wrapped around both of their hard shafts.

“Last chance,” he exhaled coolly, leaning down over Makoto so that they could kiss again.

“Don’t stop.” Makoto whispered into Haru’s mouth as he ran his hands down Haru’s strong back, holding the slender, yet taught waist as Haru relentlessly stroked them. Whether it was the constant heat that was building in his crotch after veritable years of neglect or the tongue that was insistently probing his mouth, Makoto wasn’t sure what would make him finish first. The only thing that he knew was that he did finish first.

The moan that escaped his lips was enough to cause Haru to finish as well, biting onto Makoto’s bottom lip as even more hot liquid pumped out between them. The black-haired man didn’t bother to attempt to clean up, he just flopped down onto Makoto’s chest with a yawn.

“That was fun.” Haru exhaled, feeling more secure that Makoto was willing to be touched by him. “Are you okay?”

Makoto was still caught in the bliss of post-orgasm. What was he to say about the hands that had touched him and lit a carnal fire in him the likes of which he hadn’t felt in years? “Yes, to all of it.”

Haru slid off his chest and onto the floor, padding over to the dark bathroom and returning with a large white towel. “Take your shirt off and we’ll clean up before we sleep.” Makoto cringed as he pulled the sticky shirt off, tossing it onto the floor a few feet away. Haru brought the towel down onto Makoto’s lower abdomen, making sure he did a thorough job before cleaning himself off. After climbing back into Makoto’s arms, the two kissed once more before drifting off to sleep.

The next day was a whirlwind as Makoto called his family to RSVP for the wedding, stating that he would be bringing five other people with him besides the kids and to make accommodations for them. His mother protested, but quickly changed her tune when Makoto explained that he was bringing friends from work. It wasn’t exactly a lie, but then again, he didn’t work with Haru.

Haru got to work, looking up hotels, renting cars, and doing any and everything they would need to accommodate for the rather large party of eight. Sousuke had begrudgingly agreed to go, thinking that he and Momo had only been invited as extra babysitters. However, he couldn’t complain when Haru offered to pay for their hotel room, just on the terms that one of the beds in their room would go to two of the kids.

The onsen that Haru had booked for their getaway was located in the middle of the trip from their home to Makoto’s hometown. As much as Makoto had protested, it would indeed be a road trip. Haru had taken his minivan to a mechanic to make sure that everything was in tiptop shape before their departure. Thankfully, everything was in order because Makoto felt bad enough that Haru was dropping such a ludicrous amount of money for the trip.

In the blink of an eye, the family was packed up in a van and departing from the manor. The wedding was in five days and Makoto was more than nervous to see his family for the first time in a while. It seemed like lately everything had been things happening for the first time in a long time.

“Do you all have everything you need? Chargers for your game things? Snacks? Drinks? We’re going to be driving for a while and I don’t want anyone to be upset.” Makoto asked, looking back over the seat to make sure that everyone had buckled their seatbelts. A chorus of ‘yes’ later and Haru had tossed the car in reverse and they were heading out. Sousuke and Momo were taking the former’s car with everyone’s luggage in the back.

“Are you excited yet?” Haru asked, reaching across the console to fondle Makoto’s hand for a moment. If anything, he was interested to see what Makoto’s family would be like. The man had mentioned that they stressed being close once, but it seemed like they weren’t as tight as they were.

“In a manner of speaking, sure.” Makoto replied, keeping his gaze on the scenery that was blurring by.

“It’ll be a good experience, I promise. We’re on our way to the onsen now, we’ll relax for a few days, and then go over to the wedding and then back home.” Haru implored Makoto to lighten up. “We’re even bringing Momo and the beast with us so we have extra babysitters.”

Makoto finally laughed a little. “I can’t believe you told Sousuke that they wouldn’t have to watch the kids at all, Haru.” He shook his head. “He’s going to be so mad when you pawn them off tonight.”

“Can’t help that I reserved one of the springs just for us for a while.” He spat, vowing to himself that he’d get to play with Makoto all he wanted to. That would show Sousou.

“Even still, Haru.” Makoto grinned, hoping that at least that would be fun. “I’ve never been to an onsen before, actually. It’s kind of sad considering that I’ve lived relatively close to one for my entire life.” It was only about an hour or two drive away from Ikuno, after all.

“I’ve only been once, and it was less than pleasurable. Pregnant women aren’t allowed to use the hot springs.” Haru frowned, then shook it off. This was a completely different circumstance. He was happy.

“Ah, I could see how that might put a damper on the fun.” Makoto chuckled nervously, wanting to change the subject. “Is everyone alright back there, guys? You’re awfully quiet.”

“Yeah, daddy! Rei was just showing us one of his books that he brought with him!” Nagisa shouted, reaching his tiny hands up onto the top of his dad’s seat. Makoto turned back to see the large brown book with ‘Once Upon a Time’ inscribed onto the cover. It made him think back to the fact that Rei couldn’t fall asleep without someone reading to him, but Makoto couldn’t recall Haru having snuck away to put his son to sleep recently. Maybe Haru was that amazing and could do it without raising Makoto’s notice?

“Which story are you reading?” Makoto asked, turning forward again.

“Rei was showing us the pictures in Snow White!” Rin shouted, stabbing his finger into the book. “The Evil Queen is really pretty, actually!” He smirked, despite the look that Ai was giving him.

“But she’s evil! I think Snow White is way prettier than she is.” He pouted, prompting Rei to turn the page so that he could see Snow. “See! She’s way prettier and nicer than the queen!”

“Who cares about how nice she is?” Rin spat, raising his voice a bit. “I think the queen is prettier and I’m not going to change my mind for you, Ai.”

Ai’s frown deepened. “You… you’re a buttface, Rin! I don’t wanna talk to you anymore.” He crossed his arms quickly and scooted as far away from the other boy as possible.

“Alright boys, that’s enough.” Makoto gave Ai a look in the rearview mirror. “Time to make up.”

“No!” Ai looked away. “Rin’s being dumb!” Rei pulled the book back just in time for the snack bag that Ai was carrying to sail into the seat ahead.

“Aiichiro Tachibana.” Makoto turned in his seat like a crack of thunder. “That is enough. If you aren’t going to apologize then sit there and be quiet. We do _not_ throw things when we are upset. Do you hear me?” Seriously? Why were they arguing now and over something so ridiculous?

“Oooh, Aiai got in trouble!” Nagisa giggled, spinning so that he could look over the seat at his angry older brother.

“Leave me alone, Nagisa.” He sulked. Makoto sighed, wishing that they could already pull over so that he could talk to Ai one on one for a moment. Unfortunately, that wasn’t an option. Haru kept a close eye on the father and son for the remainder of the quiet ride. It seemed to him like their moods reflected each other. If Ai was upset, then it was safe to assume that Makoto would be as well.

When they finally pulled up to the onsen, Haru led Sousuke, Momo, and the kids inside so that Makoto and Ai could have a moment alone.

“What’s the matter?” Makoto leaned down on his knee so that he could be on level with his son.

“Rin’s being dumb, daddy!” Ai tossed his hands out to emphasize his point.

“Ai.” Makoto said sternly. “We don’t use those kinds of words to talk about our friends. It’s okay for them to have different opinions than you do. I know it might be hard for you to understand, but not everyone will think the same things that you do.” He explained. “It can be weird to think about, I know. You’re probably asking yourself questions like ‘why doesn’t he agree with me?’ or ‘aren’t I right?’ and the answer is something you’ll have to figure out for yourself.” He hadn’t intended for it to turn into a lecture, but at least it seemed like he was making some headway for the first time in a while. There hadn’t been very many moments for him to feel like a parent recently, so maybe it was for the best that it happened.

“But—” Ai spoke up.

“Butts are for pants, young man.” Makoto cut him off before he could stew in his anger any further. “Go apologize to Rin before we check into our room. I know you want to have fun while we’re here, but you’ll only be mad the whole time if you don’t say sorry.”

“But dad!” Ai shouted again.

“Now, Ai. This isn’t funny. This is the first time we’re all going on a vacation together and you need to get along. We’re living with them too, so you’ll have to learn how to deal with Rin when you aren’t getting along.” He was getting a bit tired of it. Ai had never been so argumentative before, so he wasn’t sure why he had to pick now to start.

“Fine.” He looked to the ground.

“Run inside and find Haru. I’ll be there in a minute.” He patted his son on the shoulder. “Give me a hug.” Makoto brought his arms up and pulled his son against him. “You know I love you, Ai. I’m not trying to be hard on you, I just want you to be happy.”

Ai didn’t flinch. “I love you too, daddy.” Makoto released him, a tad underwhelmed at the display of affection.

Makoto stood and turned to face the building. Large stone lanterns flanked the door, greeting him stoically. The paper door slid aside to reveal the tatami floor and Haru with a room key. “Hey, everything okay?”

Makoto rolled his neck. “Kind of? Ai isn’t taking what Rin said too well, but I don’t know why. He’s not normally like this, you know that.”

Haru nodded, handing Makoto the metal key. “I couldn’t tell you why either. Sometimes kids will just be kids, they’ll argue and be over it by tomorrow.” Haru wasn’t sure what else to say on the matter. “Anyway, the two of us have a date tonight.”

“W-what? Is it our first date already?” Makoto stammered, a bit taken aback. He was under the impression that they had only rented the springs for a while.

“There’s a restaurant down the street, Makoto. A reservation has our name on it for later tonight. I already spoke with Sousuke and Momo and they’ll be watching the kids.” Haru leaned against the doorframe, barring Makoto from entering.

“What are you doing to me?” Makoto laughed, taking Haru’s hand in his.

“I’m winning, that’s what I’m doing.” Haru raised their hands and he kissed Makoto’s gently. “Is that alright with you?”

Makoto sighed dreamily. “It’s better than losing, isn’t it? As long as it’s you, I won’t complain.”

“Good.” Haru chuckled, leaning up to kiss Makoto before anyone else could see.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The sin continues or... begins? Either way, the first sexy part happened. I sweated over it for like three days, honestly. There's more on the way for later so, be excited if that's what you're into.
> 
> ANYWAY, was Rin the buttface or was it Ai? The children are probably going to be marginally more important for the next few chapters rather than just being sort of accessories to the plot! Catch you next time on gay dads! 
> 
> <3


	18. Too Much and Romantic Popsicles

“What do you mean you’re going out?” Sousuke called, taking the key to Makoto and Haru’s room. “I didn’t sign up for this vacation to be a babysitter.” He pouted a bit, fingering the white piece of steel.

“Technically you didn’t sign up at all?” Makoto replied. “You were invited, so I mean, I hate to be rude, but you should’ve expected that we’d ask you to watch the kids at some point.” Haru gave Sousou a smug look from behind Makoto, knowing that he would fold if Makoto was involved as well.

“Eh, come on Sou!” Momo smacked him on the back. “They have to watch their kids all the time and probably never have any alone time. Think about it this way, we’ll just be practicing for when we have kids!” Momo beamed up at him, though his comment left Makoto scratching his head.

“Did something happen with you two? I thought it was just casual.” Makoto prompted brazenly, spurred on by Haru at his back. They’d seemed a bit peculiar for a while, but it was hard for Makoto to say exactly what was different.

Momo laughed. “Tell them, Sou.”

Sousuke blushed a bit and looked away. “We’re… in love with each other.”

Haru’s jaw dropped, a bit envious, but it was Makoto who reacted overtly. “You are? That’s amazing! I’m so happy for you.” Makoto wouldn’t even consider that maybe he envied the other two as well. Being like that wouldn’t get him anywhere and he didn’t want to make things awkward with Sousuke, so he bottled it up.

“See? I told you they wouldn’t be mad, Sou! You’re always so worried about everything, but it’s fine.” Momo shoved him in the side a bit, eliciting a small chuckle from his boyfriend. Looking between them, Makoto wondered why he hadn’t realized how serious they were earlier. It was written on their faces and the way that Momo rested his hand at the top of Sousuke’s hip.

“Yeah, so keep an eye on the kids and we’ll be back later.” Haru totally ignored the room and grabbed Makoto’s hand to pull him away.

“Sorry! It’ll only be for a while, I promise!” Makoto called after him. Sousuke groaned loudly as they egressed, but didn’t say anything else.

The hotel did have a somewhat classic, almost garish charm. It was styled resembling an old Japanese manor, similar to Haru’s, but the difference was that most of the amenities were period accurate. Other than plumbing, the rooms had futons instead of beds, oil lanterns instead of electric lights, and there was no air conditioning. Makoto wouldn’t complain since Haru had paid for it and it was a little last minute, but no air conditioning? At least the open air baths seemed like an amazing deal. It would be nice to unwind for once.

Once they were out in the hallway, Haru quickly pressed Makoto against the wall and bent up to kiss him. “H-Haru! What if someone sees us?” Makoto whined, grabbing Haru’s shoulders to push him off. He couldn’t hide the fact that there were butterflies in his stomach and pink in his cheeks. This was the date that Makoto had been looking forward to since they’d gotten the wedding invitation. How could he get down on himself now?

“Don’t care, kiss me again.” He shrugged out of Makoto’s grasp and planted another quick peck on his lips. “I’ve got big plans for us tonight, Makoto.” There was a small, almost imperceptible quirk of his eyebrow at the end of that statement that made Makoto’s knees turn to jelly. What could Haru have possibly done that Makoto didn’t know about?

“Let’s just get on with it already then. You’re making me nervous.” Makoto admitted, turning his head to stare at the floor.

“Don’t be nervous, be excited. I want to be able to remember this.” Haru slipped his hand into Makoto’s and dragged him out of the building. The evening was hot and sticky and Makoto couldn’t help but sweat as soon as the setting sun made contact with his clothes. Haru had noted when they moved in that a lot of Makoto’s clothes were so dad-like that Makoto had labored in making sure that his wardrobe had enough variety to avoid being embarrassing.

The plaid overshirt ruffled in the slight breeze as Makoto pried the black shirt clung to his back off. “It’s a real scorcher, isn’t it?” Makoto commented as they walked down the street, barely realizing that he was still holding hands with Haru. It was only natural to him, but a nasty look from a man coming towards them prompted him to cringe and pull his hand back.

“Yes.” Haru replied pointedly, glaring at the stranger who had ruined his intimate moment. “It would’ve been warmer had we come last week.” He continued the small talk, more than ready to get to the restaurant that Haru had made arrangements with. Haru had gone to great lengths to show his affection for Makoto while they were on this trip, and he hoped that Makoto would appreciate it all.

Their conversation remained idle and light as they approached a small shop. At least it appeared to be small. The inside was a large square with a single table in the middle of a slick red rug. The lighting was low enough to see, but not enough to break the mood. Makoto couldn’t even tell what color the walls actually were.

“Haru… what’s going on here?” Makoto asked, reaching back out to grab Haru’s hand in the dim light. He had worn his glasses for aesthetic, but there wasn’t much to be said about them correcting his vision in poor light. He kicked himself for not choosing contacts.

“Our first date, Makoto.” He smiled bit, leading Makoto over to the table. “I reserved the entire restaurant for an hour, just for us.” Haru released Makoto’s hand long enough to pull his chair out. “Sit.”

Makoto blushed a bit as he sat down on a cushioned armchair that seemed like it had no business in a restaurant. What if someone spilled something on it? His gaze followed Haru to a stand a few feet away. “Would you like some wine? It’s my favorite Moscato.” The cork popped out of the bottle loudly, alerting Makoto to the fact that this was really happening.

“Sure, but not too much.” He agreed. “I don’t hold alcohol very well.” Makoto flinched like he’d been slapped, knowing the last time he’d drank had been at the date with Kisumi, and the last thing he wanted was to remind Haru of that, even if it had been the night he confessed.

The sound of liquid being poured and then placed a few inches in front of him filled Makoto’s ears. “Haru, I hate to kill the mood, but is there a light we can use? I wore my glasses like an idiot and I can’t really see anything.”

Haru chuckled, picking up a matchbook off the table and lighting a single candle. “Are you saying that you want to see me?”

“Y-yes, I do.” Makoto replied hastily, tripping over his words and feeling the blush creep into his ears. “Why would I not want to?”

Haru was a bit taken aback by that, having fully expected Makoto to freak out and deny it. “Good. I’m glad to hear that.” He picked up the wine glass, taking a long sip of the sweet juice. “Are you ready for surprise number two?”

Makoto stopped, midway to picking up his glass. “Wait, there’s more?” His glasses slipped down his nose a bit, obfuscating Haru’s expression.

“Today,” he chuckled. “There will always be more.” As if on cue, a door across the room clicked open and a cart approached the two of them.

Wordlessly, a waiter placed cover platter in front of each of them and padded away as if he’d done nothing at all. Makoto swallowed and pushed his glasses back up, reaching out to pull the lid off of what very well could’ve been a silver platter.

“Haru,” Makoto sighed, pushing down his dissent. “Thanks.” This was too much and apparently there was more on the way, so how could Makoto object now?

Under the lid, Makoto spied a large juicy looking steak and salad. As soon as the aroma hit his nose, he could barely hold back the drool. If he’d been at home, it likely would’ve spilled out the corners of his mouth like a fountain statue.

“Wait.” Haru said, grabbing his glass. “A toast, to you.” Haru held it in the air, motioning for Makoto to do the same.

Reluctantly, the toast was returned. “To you.” Makoto replied earnestly, though he didn’t think he’d done anything worth toasting over.

After a sweet sip of wine, Makoto picked his knife and dug into the steak before the salad. It was an amazing cut of meat, cooked perfectly medium-rare. He didn’t remember ever taking someone on a date to a restaurant with such amazing food, but apparently he simply hadn’t done his research.

“There’s one more thing for the moment, while you’re in a state of food bliss.” Haru shattered Makoto’s laser-like focus on dinner with a long, black box. Green eyes snapped up and back down, a bit disgruntled now. There was apparently _even more_ after that!

Even still, his hands wrapped around the smooth fabric of the box, pulling it up and open. On a bed of velvet sat a long silver chain, inset with what appeared to be glittering emeralds in the poor lighting.

“Do you like it?” Haru questioned. “It was a bit difficult to have made with such short notice, but I—”

“That’s enough, Haru.” Makoto interrupted him, sternly. “I don’t need this. I don’t need an entire restaurant and a fancy dinner. I don’t need an entire vacation and for you to show off how much money you have.”

“But I…” Haru was crushed immediately. Hadn’t Makoto said that he wanted financial help? “You told me that you wanted help with money though!” His voice rose a bit, and he pulled back. Haru didn’t want to let his insecurities show, he couldn’t handle it if Makoto saw his weaknesses and reacted badly.

“I wanted to be your partner, Haru.” Makoto replied, setting the necklace down. “And I wanted help with money, yes, but I meant help. I want to be your equal, and that means going half and half on a vacation for our family, half and half for our first date.” His grievances poured out of him like wine, and he couldn’t stop himself. “Half of this relationship already likes you, so why can’t you like yourself?”

Haru’s eyes were wide as they fell to the half-eaten mackerel on the plate before him. “But Makoto, I don’t know what else you want from me? What if you leave me?” How had such a beautiful evening turned sour so quickly? It was all his fault.

Makoto slammed his fist down on the table, causing his fork to clatter loudly against his plate. “Stop it. I’m not leaving you, I just said that I like you.” His voice softened. “I still do, really. You need to listen to me when I tell you this.”

“Tell me what?” Haru replied, breathing heavily. This was it, Makoto had had enough and was about to break it off. So much happiness lost so quickly. Haru hated it, hated himself for ruining it.

“Haru,” he teared up a bit, standing from the chair. “You don’t have to try so hard, you already have me.” The black box flicked close with a satisfying click.

A chill ran down Haru’s entire body as a cold, silver chain came down around his neck. “What are you doing?”

“Giving this back to you. I think you should wear it instead of me.” Makoto sighed, a bit exasperated by how difficult Haru was being. “That way whenever you start to feel insecure about it, about us… you’ll know that I’m not going anywhere for a long time. I know I have my issues, Haru, but you’re where I want to be right now.”

Haru wasn’t sure what to say. He only knew that there were tears freely flowing from his eyes as he flung himself into Makoto’s chest, clinging onto his plaid dad shirt for dear life. “Please don’t hate me, Makoto. I don’t know how else to show you that I care. I have money and I have a house, but what else can I give you that will make you stay with me?”

Makoto snickered a bit, rubbing the back of Haru’s head gingerly while he sobbed. “You really don’t listen, do you?” It was sort of endearing and irritating at the same time. “I don’t hate you, and I’m definitely staying with you. You know how I know you care?” Makoto prompted him.

Haru still couldn’t be for sure. “How?” He whimpered.

“Because of this.” Makoto pulled his hands back and leaned down on his knee. In an instance, his mouth was on Haru’s. It was a bit salty with the taste of Haru’s tears, but they were into it. If Makoto couldn’t get his boyfriend to listen to it, he’d have to use force.

“I believe you.” Haru said finally, breaking their kiss. “Was it really too much? This was all Gou was about. She never minded me spending money on her.”

Makoto felt like it might be a bit of a low blow, but he had to say it. “I’m not her and you shouldn’t expect that I’ll take it sitting down, Haru.” It was the worst thing he’d ever done in a relationship: use his teacher voice. “A healthy relationship is like the tides. There’s give and take and compromise and we have to communicate or else it won’t last. I could probably stand a little bit of this, but a vacation, an entire restaurant, an expensive steak, jewelry, and more, apparently, is too much.”

Of course, that was the reason his relationship with Gou had failed. They always argued when they spoke, so he’d taken to buying her whatever she asked for to keep her subdued. It had been for the sake of the kids, but it ended up doing more damage than helping in the long run. “How do I get you then?”

Makoto laughed out loud, wiping the last of the tears off Haru’s concerned face. “Buy me a popsicle and kiss me?” He replied. “And you’ve already gotten me, boyfriend.” Makoto could hardly believe what a big misunderstanding it had been. He truly hoped that Haru would be able to move past it.

Could… that really work, Haru asked himself. “Then let’s go!” He stood, knocking Makoto off his feet and onto his butt with a loud ‘oof.’

“Wait, wait, you already paid for dinner!” Makoto scolded him, really wanting that steak. How could he help himself?

“Then after dinner!” Haru grabbed Makoto’s hand and helped him back onto his feet. “I’m sorry for this.”

“Don’t be.” Makoto sighed. “It’s something we hadn’t talked about, so how would you have known? I’m a sucker for romance, so literally anything will get to me. Hell, you could pick me a flower from the bushes out back and I would love it, and you.” Wait, what? “I-I mean, it’s too soon for that, I misspoke!”

There was the Makoto that Haru had fallen for. “I know what you meant, Makoto. It’s one of the reasons I like you.” Honesty was such a desirable trait and it was all Makoto was.

“Then let’s hurry up and finish eating. There’s a popsicle and a kiss with my name on it waiting outside.” Makoto teased, leaning in for one more kiss before they sat down and continued their meal like nothing had gone amiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear you guys have no idea how much I have to scale back the relationship developments in this fic. If I had gone absolutely nuts with it, Haru and Makoto would've kissed in chapter 2, diddled for the first time in chapter 5, and then probably have gotten married or something crazy like that in chapter like 7. Seriously. I kind of poked fun at myself there at the end with the "it’s too soon for that" line because I really want to keep this fic on like a realistic relationship progression? As far as I've kept up with it, they've known each other for about 3 months and been dating for around a month and a half? If you want lovey-dovey couple, there's probably gonna be more Soumomo in the future and Lorde knows they're the only thing that keeps me from taking the Makoharu in this story 3000x too far.
> 
> The characters in this story are still developing and I literally have no plans to end this fic, like, I do this story for fun, so it'll go on until I get bored of it. Plus it's my most popular fic and I don't want to let go my mild fame for this makoharu fic ;;
> 
> I go back to class on the 24th, so I'll try to update one more time before then, but no promises. Thanks for reading! Catch you next time on gay dads! <3


	19. Run Away and Hot Springs

Hand in hand, the two fathers walked slowly back to their hotel. While Makoto had insisted that Haru lay off the grandiose gestures of affection, he wouldn’t complain about whatever else that had already been paid for. It wouldn’t do them any good for him to be upset about money already spent, and Haru knew not to do it again. That was really more than enough for Makoto; that they understood each other.

Well, he appreciated the alone time they’d have at the hot spring too.

Slipping into the hotel room quietly, they hoped to escape the notice of the kids and Sousuke. Little did they know, Sousuke was frantically searching for two missing kids.

Ai snuck out of the room when Momo was playing with Nagisa and Rei. Rin was being really mean ever since they’d gotten into the argument about whatever and Ai didn’t want to have to deal with his dumb buttface anymore! Rin was going to have to seriously apologize for it later.

Ai hadn’t intended to go quite so far with his exit plan. He carelessly strode down the hall of the hotel, out a back door, and then suddenly he was in the middle of a street that was lively in the rush of the twilight. The little boy was scared, horribly so. Ai had never been out of the sight of his father for longer than a few minutes at a time, much less alone in the big city. He only hoped that Rin would feel _really_ bad when he got back.

Sousuke was a mess, sweating and red and about to snap Momo into a million pieces. “We _have_ to find Aiichiro and Rin before their dads get back.” He grinded his teeth together so hard that he thought they would crack. He looked away for two seconds and then Rin and Ai were both gone.

“Don’t worry about it, Sou! I’m sure the kids will turn up before Haru and Mako get back from the hot spring.” Momo wasn’t quite grasping the gravity of the situation. He’d always found Ai much more temperate than his younger brother, and for him to just go up and missing… something had to have seriously gone wrong.

“Stay here and watch the other two. I’m going to look in the hotel and around on the streets if I have to.” Sousuke grabbed their room key and stepped out into the hall, clenching his free hand into a fist. “Ai! Rin! Where are you?” He called, likely disturbing any other guests that were staying there. He couldn’t give a single fuck about whatever old coots were there on holiday.

Sousuke shivered as cold sweat rolled down his back, despite the heat of the day. There was something unnervingly familiar about the entire situation. Hadn’t one of his own younger brothers pulled a stunt like this when he was in middle school?

Reaching out for the front door, Sousuke nearly jumped out of his skin when he caught sight of black hair slipping around the side of the main desk.

“Rin!” He ran over, diving across the unmanned desk to make sure that Rin had no chance of escape. One broken pen and dozens of crumpled up papers later, Sousuke grumbling on the floor with Rin next to him. He was pretty sure that he wouldn’t be able to walk right tomorrow, but there was so much adrenaline pumping through his veins that he barely noticed the pain. The boy’s maroon eyes were alight with fear and a little wet around the edges.

“Where’s Ai?” He surprised Sousuke, leaning forward on his knobby knees to grab Sousuke’s sleeves. It looked like he was about to burst into tears.

Sousuke pulled the pen out of his left asscheek, where it succeeded in piercing through the denim. “You don’t know where he went?” And things, amazingly, were worse. If the two of them weren’t together and Rin had already searched all around, then that could only mean that Ai had gone out into the city. Sousuke knew without a doubt that Ai wouldn’t be able to make it on his own.

“Go back to the room and tell Momo I’m going out to find Ai.” Sousuke grabbed Rin’s shoulders. “Seriously, Rin, don’t go off and do anything stupid. I will find him, come hell or high god damn water.” Sousuke felt anxiety well up in his gut, but ignored it as he sent Rin away.

He pushed the door open, stopping near one of the tall concrete lanterns outside the hotel. Glancing either way down the street, Sousuke could hardly make out the boulevard from the heatwaves. Ai could’ve gone either way, but he’d likely head back down the way the car had come from. He would at least be a little more familiar with it, Sousuke reasoned.

The rush of people at the intersection down the street nearly overwhelmed Sousuke, who hadn’t been to a large city since he graduated from university six years before. Fighting into the crowd to check a nearby alleyway, Sousuke couldn’t say he missed it. In the fleeting instance it took him to cross the street, someone stepped on his foot, he was nearly pickpocketed, and a homeless man asked him for change.

Pacing down into the alley, Sousuke could’ve sworn that he saw a bright green coat running away from him. “Aiichiro, is that you?” He shouted, running down through the sludge of trash and old water to catch up with the flicker of green he desperately hoped was Ai.

Unfortunately, it had been a trash bag that had been blown by the wind. That was what he felt like, a plastic bag, drifting through the wind. Sousuke was at his wit’s end, not knowing where else to look. If Ai hadn’t gone down this way, then he could’ve been anywhere. Stepping back into the busy street, Sousuke took a deep breath.

“Has anyone seen my child? He’s about four and a half feet tall with light brown hair and teal eyes!” He screamed at the top of his lungs, startling everyone within a twenty foot radius. For a moment, no one reacted at all. Then, as if the clouds had separated and luck had shone down upon him, the people on the street began to part until there was a small, empty circle with a little boy crying in the center. Ai was still on his feet, but his eyes looked like he’d been sobbing for a good ten or fifteen minutes.

Sousuke moved as fast as his feet could carry him, skidding across the concrete on his knees so that Ai was in his arms. “What the hell were you thinking, Ai? You can’t just run off like that without saying anything! I don’t know what I’d do if something ever happened to you.” There was definitely sand in his eyes, as there was no way that big, grumpy Sousuke could ever cry.

Ai’s arms came up. “Sousou, Rin made me m-mad and I ran away and it was _so scary_. Some guy tried to get me to buy stuff from him a-and a woman tried to give me candy but I didn’t take it because she was a stranger and I-I,” his sentence quickly deteriorated into a loud sob as Sousuke cradled Ai in his arms. Without another moment of hesitation, Sousuke picked Ai up and carried him back to the hotel, trying to ignore the fact that his left asscheek and knees were bleeding.

Sousuke was much more at ease now that Ai was back with him. “What made you run off like that anyway? You know I have to tell your dad,” Sousuke scolded him.

“What?” Ai stiffened a little, tightening his grip on the collar of Sousuke’s shirt. “Please don’t tell my dad, Sousou! I’m mad at Rin and he was being a butthead!”

Sousuke rolled his eyes and groaned loudly. “Fine, I won’t tell your dad, but you have to promise to never do anything that reckless again. And you have to make up with Rin.”

Ai shook his head. “No way! Rin is mean!”

Now that they were back in front of the hotel, Sousuke deposited Ai back onto the ground in front of the door. “Look, either I tell your dad that you ran off, or you make up with Rin. Your choice,” he said.

Ai’s gaze fell to the ground with a sour expression. “Make Rin apologize. He started it.” Sousuke pulled the door open.

“He started it and you’re going to end it, Ai. I mean it.” Sousuke closely watched Ai take two steps inside and then Rin came out of nowhere and practically strangled him in a hug.

“Ai! You’re okay! I’m so sorry about what I said I was being dumb and then you left and I’m really sorry, Ai!” Rin was squawking a mile a minute, absolutely pouring out words so quickly that Sousuke couldn’t keep up.

“Rin, it’s okay, I guess.” Ai sighed, pushing Rin off him. It seemed like he wasn’t really over it, but Sousuke wasn’t going to intervene. They lived together so they needed to learn how to get along.

“Do you really forgive me?” Rin asked, grabbing Ai’s hand.

“I don’t want to.” He sneered, trying to wiggle his fingers out of Rin’s. Rin pouted.

“Why not? I apologized and you said it was okay!” Rin pulled his own hand back, scowling down at Ai.

“Because you were really mean and you hurt my feelings and you were a big dumb buttface!” Ai shouted, stepping back towards Sousuke. “I don’t want to talk to you anymore!”

Sousuke was at the breaking point. “Can I ask you a question, Ai? Do you even remember why you’re mad?”

That made Ai freeze in his tracks. “It’s because he, uh… Okay, I don’t remember, but I know he did something!”

“Ai.” Sousuke put his foot down. “That’s enough. It’s time to kiss and make up.”

Of course when Sousuke said this, he meant it metaphorically. Rin, however, wasted no time stepping forward and pressing his lips against Ai’s. “That’s what our dads do when they argue!”

Ai looked shocked, reddened, and then immediately burst into tears. “W-what? I don’t want to be a mom yet!” Rin gasped and took a step back.

“What?” Rin repeated, seriously concerned that he was about to be a father at ten. “Wait, is that where babies come from?”

Sousuke stared at Ai’s crying face for a moment as he processed that completely idiotic thought. “Seriously, how are those two raising you guys?” Sousuke muttered. “You won’t have a baby from just a little peck like that, calm down.”

However that raised another point. Rin wasted no time stealing Ai’s first kiss, even though Sousuke had meant it teasingly. Could it be their silly little version of elementary school romance? It made sense to him. After all, their fathers were in deep together. Sousuke wondered what it was like between Rei and Nagisa, who were very different than their older brothers. That would be an interesting family if they all ended up getting together. Talk about son-in-laws and stepsons.

“A-are you sure?” He stammered, not leaving Sousuke’s side.

“I’m positive. You’re way too young for that anyway.” He snickered, glad they were back to normal. “Both of you just promise me you won’t say anything to your dads about running off or your little kiss. I don’t think Makoto would take it very well and we don’t want to ruin the weekend, do we?” Sousuke was dead serious. If Makoto knew that Sou had slacked off, he’d probably never be trusted to watch the kids again. That would kill him, probably.

“I promise!” They both shouted in unison, hopefully resynchronized like they were in class. Sousuke had even switched some things around so that the two could sit near each other. He didn’t know what Rin was like before, but Ai had really come out of his shell since he came around. It was nice to see him speaking up for himself for once, even if it came in the surprise of Ai running away.

“Let’s get back to the hotel room before your parents get back, already.” Sousuke complained, playfully kneeing Rin in the back a bit. He was more than eager to get Momo to patch up his knees and ass before one of the other adults could make fun of him.

\-------------------------

Makoto took the Popsicle wrapper from Haru as he settled back into the gently scalding water. The stones below were almost as hot as the water, but served to loosen Makoto up rather than burn him. The spring he’d rented was nice and spacious, but they really only needed the few feet around them.

“Haru, this is amazing.” Makoto sighed in delight, stretching his long legs out in the water.

“Don’t get too comfortable. You still owe me a kiss.” He replied, pulling off his towel and getting into the water next to Makoto, who averted his gaze. Makoto still wasn’t ready to see it all. He liked Haru a lot, but he was afraid that if he looked at his body and couldn’t feel anything that it would devastate him. Makoto would rather do it in the dark where the only things he needed to know were where Haru’s mouth and hands were.

“I know, come over here next to me and we can share. This is the kind with two sticks.” Makoto pointed out, ripping the plastic sleeve open like Haru hadn’t chosen it on purpose.

“It’s melon flavored, you like that one.” Haru said, taking the wooden stick from Makoto’s hand.

“You should’ve gotten the blue raspberry one or sea salt. I know you like both of those, and I do too.” Makoto stuck the frozen treat in his mouth, actually a little glad that he at least hadn’t gotten cherry. “I really meant it when I said not everything has to be about me, Haru. I want you to be happy too.” Makoto scooted across the rocks and put his free hand around Haru’s shoulder to pull him closer.

“I really care about you, even with all that’s happened to me. I’m sorry if I’m so difficult sometimes, Makoto.” Haru brought his hand up to finger the chain around his throat. Originally it was for Makoto, but it was sort of a relief that he didn’t have to worry so much about pleasing someone. Makoto was happy just to be around Haru, and that was something that Haru didn’t know how to handle.

“I know, you’ve been through some stuff. I don’t want you to think that I can’t handle a little give and take, but you have to know that isn’t what’s important to me.” Makoto took a bite of the end of the Popsicle. “I want you, and money is just a nice perk.” He teased.

“Not funny.” Haru replied, leaning his wet head into the crux of Makoto’s shoulder. “Are you excited to see your little brother get married tomorrow?”

Makoto thought on it for a moment. “I guess. Turns out my sister set him up with one her friends from work, even though she isn’t dating anyone. I wonder how she suckered him into it, honestly. They’re still in university.” Ren always was a little anxious and shy when they were younger. Ai reminded him of Ren a lot in that aspect.

“Does he look like you?” Haru asked, wondering what an entire family of people like Makoto would be like. It was a beautiful dream and all too overwhelming. He couldn’t imagine all the kindness.

“Kind of? I haven’t seen any pictures since they were around fourteen.” Makoto sighed. “They were spitting images of our parents.” Except his sister was always a bit pushy towards their brother. Makoto probably would’ve ended up the same if he’d had a sister the same age.

“What happened when they were fourteen?” Haru bit down into the stick of his icy treat, a little disappointed that it was already gone.

“We moved.” Makoto answered. “I’d finally graduated and Chigusa quit her jobs to stay at home and watch the kids after I got a job.”

“I wanted to ask you how you ended up in Iwatobi, actually.” Haru continued the game of twenty questions, purposefully avoiding any direct questions about his wife. It was easier to let Makoto say what he wanted and open up about it as he felt comfortable.

“Things happened and I couldn’t bear being at home anymore. There was an opening for a teacher, so I took the kids and we left Ikuno.” Makoto left it vague, not wanting to remember the way the people in the town looked at him afterwards. He would never understand why they blamed him for something that also destroyed him.

“Ah,” he muttered. “That’s enough, you don’t have to tell me anything else.” Makoto tossed his Popsicle stick a few good feet onto the stones outside the bath.

“Good, because I’m ready for that kiss.” Makoto leaned over and kissed Haru, thankful for the easy presence and the sweet taste of melon that pervaded their mouths.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so someone wanted a chapter that focused on the kids more than the adults so I hope this is what you wanted! Anyway, next chapter will be eventful. There's a gamechanger on the horizon, kids. I hope you're ready for The Wedding (which is not to Gou, I just want to clarify that right now. Ren is not marrying Gou lol)
> 
> Catch you next time on Gay Dads™, thanks for reading! <3
> 
> (ALSO WE'RE AT OVER 7000 VIEWS AND ALMOST 500 KUDOS I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH OH MY GOD I NEVER IMAGINED THIS FIC WOULD EVER GET THIS POPULAR I THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS!)


	20. White Weddings and Black Eyes

Makoto bent down to help Rei button the cuffs of his shirt that he was sure Nagisa had undone in the car. They’d arrived at the wedding church, the same one that Makoto had gotten married in, a little late. Nagisa had misplaced his tie in the hotel room and they’d spent nearly half an hour looking for it. Haru had finally found it in bathtub, for whatever reason. Perhaps Nagisa hadn’t wanted to attend and had hidden it on purpose.

“Is everyone ready to put on a happy face for your new aunt and your uncle?” He asked Nagisa and Ai, though it might as well have applied to Rei and Rin too. Makoto had spent a good while styling all the kids’ hair, along with buttoning shirts and tying ties. For all intents and purposes, they were the picture-perfect family, minus all the homosexual tendencies.

“Can the teacher bit, Makoto, we get it.” Sousuke griped, arm wrapped around Momo as they mounted the steps.

“Don’t be rude to Makoto.” Haru stared Sousuke down, pushing between him and Momo. “Keep your hands off while we’re here. Don’t make a scene.”

Sousuke grumbled a bit, moving back towards Momo. Makoto rolled his eyes and grabbed the big wooden door. The ceremony shouldn’t have started yet, he told himself. Thankfully, he was right. The first person he saw was his mother, who immediately lit up when she realized it was him.

“M-Makoto! We didn’t think you were coming.” She took a few steps forward and stuck her arms up to hug Makoto around the neck. “Where are the kids?”

“Sorry, we were running late. You know how Nagisa can be.” He hugged her back, enjoying the moment of seeing his mom for the first time in forever. “They should be right behind me.”

Makoto turned to see Haru at his back and the kids behind him. “Hello.” Haru said, surprised to see how much Makoto resembled her. Her hair was a shade darker, graying at the roots, but the eye shape and jawline were startlingly alike. The dress she was wearing was light green, complimenting her eyes.

“Grandma!” Nagisa shouted, running past Makoto and jumping on the older woman. He latched right onto her legs as Sousuke and Momo came in with Haru’s kids.

“We’re going to be seated while you chat with your parents.” Sousuke told them, dragging Haru off against his will so the family could have some alone time.

Makoto nodded, trying not to laugh at the annoyed expression Haru was sporting. Of course, he’d probably really wanted to meet his Mom. “Where’s Ai?” He looked down when he felt a tug on his pants. Ai was against his side, looking on at Nagisa and his grandmother nervously.

It made sense, honestly. Things with his parents hadn’t always been great and Ai probably still remembered some of the arguing from way back. Makoto hoped he wouldn’t let it keep him from having a good time with their family.

“Come on, Aiichirou, give grandma a hug. I remember when you were barely up to my knee! How old are you?” Mom asked, limping over with Nagisa still clutched to her leg. Ai ducked back around Makoto.

“Sorry, he’s still kind of shy.” Makoto lied, knowing full well that Ai usually didn’t have a problem dealing with people as long as he was there too. Mom frowned a bit, but didn’t press it too hard.

“Just like Ren when he was that age.” She sighed. “I can’t believe he’s getting married today. I almost thought he never was, honestly. He’s never really dated before, let alone something this serious. We’re very lucky that Ran’s friend was so nice.” Mom smiled a bit, pointing down the hallway. “I’ll watch the boys, so you should say hi to your brother before the ceremony. I’m sure he’d be happy to see you. Second door on the left.”

Makoto nodded, patting Ai’s arm. One look back later, and he headed down the hall to see his brother for what felt like the first time in ages. He was all grown up now and getting married. It was weird to think that he would finally be the uncle for once, instead of being the only one with kids.

The door was marked with a large paper bowtie, making Makoto chuckle a bit. He didn’t think that Ren would be the type for such cutesy things. Makoto knocked, waited a moment, and then knocked again when no one answered the door.

After another long moment, he turned the door knob and opened the door. The room was a mess of tuxedo pieces that were strewn all over. It looked like his brother had put it all on and then forcefully torn it off with little regard for how expensive it was.

“Ren?” The small room had a wooden screen over the corner, likely so Ren could change without being bothered. “Hey, Ren.” Stepping past the corner of the screen, Makoto’s gaze fell first on the open window and then the note that was left under a single glossy black shoe.

Without hesitation, he reached for it. There was no doubt in his suddenly uneasy stomach to what the note would say.

_Dear Family and Aki,_

_I’ll start here with telling you that it isn’t love and it never will be. I could never bring myself to tell you how I really felt, but I didn’t want to marry her. I didn’t want to get married to anyone, really. I’m sorry, I really am. After you read this, I won’t be around anymore. I’m sorry for causing you problems for all these years, Mom and Dad. And I’m sorry for causing you trouble and heartache too, Aki. I’m sure you never truly loved me either, but Ran forced you into it. If he shows up, please tell Makoto that I still love him no matter how much time has gone by._

_I’m sorry,_

_Ren_

Makoto’s heart sank. Why did it have to happen like this? Couldn’t someone else have stumbled onto the message instead of him? He leaned out and pulled the window closed, noting the other shoe seemed to be in the shrubbery outside. After mulling over what to do, he clenched his jaw and walked back to the foyer of the church. Unfortunately, his mother had already taken his kids inside.

It felt like the walk of shame, as Makoto approached his father who was all gussied up in his tux. Makoto had inherited his sheer size from his father, though Makoto was still taller than he was. Makoto wanted to cry when his dad’s eyes lit up like he hadn’t seen him in years, which he hadn’t.

“Son! You’re looking even better than the last time I saw you.” Dad tossed his arms up to give Makoto a hug as well. Makoto could feel the thin pretense on his smile as he clutched the note in his fist.

“Yeah, it has.” Makoto held the note out to him, deciding to get the torment over with before it became comfortable again. His dad eyed him warily, taking the note from him as his sister walked over. She was a head shorter than Makoto, but looked just like their mother. It was almost frightening, honestly.

“Makoto, is that you?” She asked, pulling him into a tight, nearly crushing hug.

“R-Ran, please, I can’t breathe.” Makoto wheezed, trying to ignore the twinge of his back as her arms released.

“Sorry, I don’t get to see my favorite older brother every day.” She chuckled. Wasn’t Ren a few seconds older than her? Dad gasped, reddening at an alarming rate.

“Makoto, where did you find this?” He demanded.

“It was in Ren’s dressing room, stuck under a shoe. The window was open and he was nowhere in sight.” Makoto said, alarming the mother of the bride who was a few feet away.

“What are you saying? The groom has… run away? I always knew that son of yours was worthless. Definitely not good enough for my daughter.” She tossed her hands up and then turned around, like she hadn’t just dropped a major insult.

“Hey, that’s uncalled for.” Makoto fired back, taking an offensive stance. “I don’t think your daughter would want you to say that about the man she was going to marry. What about her feelings?”

“Who cares what she wanted? He clearly didn’t.” She returned, irritating Makoto to no end. Of course, her statement was accurate.

The next few minutes were a blur as insults were lobbed between sides and the bride ran in with streaks of mascara running down her face. Makoto blocked a blow that her father had tossed at his, taking it hard on the left side of his face.

Of course, after that, Haru and Sousuke ran up and quelled them all before it could turn into a full-fledged battle of the families. Makoto was still amped up and ready to go, but the sight of how terrified Ai looked snapped him back to his senses. The location of the reception for the wedding was announced, and the food was free, including the cake that may or may not have cost a pretty penny.

Makoto didn’t say anything else to his parents before they left. It had been a disaster and he felt like he could still escape before he was bombarded with questions like “Where are you living?” or “Are you seeing anyone right now?”

Haru had tried to talk to him about what’d happened, even offering to stop at a convenience store on the way back to get him ice for his bruising face. Makoto declined the offer, wanting to do nothing more than take the drive back home as quickly as possible and pretend like the whole wedding hadn’t gone off like fart in a spacesuit.

Haru wasn’t sure exactly what to think. He’d expected Makoto’s family to be a lot more… wholesome than they’d ended up being. Of course, he realized that nothing ever really turned out like expected it to anymore. It was one of the things he’d learned after being with Makoto for a while. He could never pin down exactly what Makoto would do next. It was part of his charm.

A few tense hours later, and they were back home. Makoto was the first one out of the car and the first one to see the person sitting on the doorstep. He figured that it was a salesmen or something, but he couldn’t have been more wrong. The man asleep with his head on a post was none other than his runaway brother.

He crouched down and shook Ren’s shoulder. “Ren, what are you doing here?”

Light brown eyes flickered accompanied by a yawn. “Hey Mako, thought I would come visit for a few days.” He slurred.

Makoto was in disbelief. “How did you get here? How did you even know to come here?” It was a valid question, and he was sure he hadn’t told his parents his new address yet.

“The RSVP had this address on it.” He yawned again. “Sorry, I didn’t have anywhere else to go.” Makoto knew that he’d have to take him in, but that only raised more flags. He and Haru shared a room and the kids knew that they were together. What would happen when Ren found out that his older brother was dating another man?

Haru walked up, carrying some luggage. “Who’s this? Someone you know?”

Makoto could hardly believe that Haru didn’t immediately see the resemblance between Ren and Ai. If anything, Ren looked more like he could be Ai’s father than Makoto did.

“Haru, this is my brother, Ren.” Makoto gestured down to Ren, causing Haru’s eyes to widen.

“Wait, weren’t you supposed to be getting married today?” Haru asked, stepping past a suitcase that probably belonged to Ren to open the door.

“I wasn’t going to get married when I didn’t want to.” Ren replied, stretching before putting his hands on his knees and standing. He was about as tall as his sister was, with a crop of short brown hair that mirrored his eyes.

Nagisa ran up a second later with Rin hot on his heels. The two of them were clearly very ready to be home. “Makoto, who’s this other kid and that guy?”

“That’s Haru, Rin’s dad. Don’t get excited, it’s spelled with an ‘I’, not an ‘E’. He has another son, too, named Rei.” Makoto pointed to where the little boy was struggling to drag his over-packed suitcase across the yard.

“Rei, let me help you with that.” Ai said, grabbing the straps to take it from the younger boy. Makoto couldn’t hide the little smile on his face. Too cute.

“So are you two living together?” Ren followed up, ignoring that Sousuke and Momo had dumped out the bags that didn’t belong to them and left without any ceremony.

“Y-yeah, we are. It’s a long story.” Makoto neglected to say exactly what the story was and he’d leave out any of the romantic details if he was really pressed about it.

“Is there a guest bedroom in this big house or do I have to sleep on the couch?” Ren leaned down to grab his suitcase, stepping out of the way when Ai toddled by with Rei’s luggage.

“Sorry, this place only has five bedrooms and they’re all occupied.” Makoto shrugged. “You’re on couch duty.”

Ren quirked up an eyebrow. “Wait, did you say five? Aren’t there six of you?” Shit. Makoto had already said too much and Ren wasn’t even inside yet.

“I share a bed, er, bedroom with Haru. It’s not a big deal, more room for the kids and all.” Makoto kicked himself for his slip of the tongue. He was not smooth and it was by no means an amazing save.

“Right, that makes sense. I know you always put your kids first, Makoto. I really missed you after you moved here.” Ren took a step forward, the last of his nuclear family to hug him. Makoto was relieved that Ren had bought the excuse.

“I missed you too, and our sister.” Makoto was smiling again. “It’s been a long time since I’ve really felt like I had a home, honestly. You should come inside.”

Ren dragged his suitcase into the foyer and dropped it, stepping into the living room to plop down on the couch. “Beats the porch.” He sighed, settling into his bed for what he hoped would be a few nights at least.

In the meantime, Makoto went out to get the rest of the luggage, promising to thank Sousuke for being such a sport during the trip. It had gone both better and worse than Makoto had planned. He felt closer to Haru, but even more alienated from his family. Being an adult was so trying.

“What happened to the side of your face?” Ren asked as Makoto came back inside.

“Your fiancé’s father tried to punch Dad in the face and I got in the way.” He grumbled, still annoyed by all the mean words that had been lobbed between the two families. “You really owe our parents a lot for dealing with the fallout from that.”

“I don’t owe them anything, and you don’t either. This is their penance for how they handled what happened with you and Chigusa.” Ren sneered, a little angry that Makoto was trying to scold him.

Makoto immediately dropped the bags. “Ren.” His voice was cold. “Don’t say her name in this house. Don’t talk about her, don’t even think about her, do you understand me? It’s taken me a long time to get Ai to where he is and to where I am and I won’t have you coming in here and ruining it.”

Ren was a little intimidated and stood down. “R-right, okay. Your kids really do come first, Makoto.” For some reason, he was disappointed that he couldn’t come first for Makoto. He didn’t really know why he expected it to be that way after something like seven years.

“I’m sorry, I can’t talk about it, Ren. I’m not ready, Ai isn’t ready. I don’t even know how Nagisa feels about it, he was so young.” Makoto clenched his jaw, trying to manage the grief.

“Okay, I get it.” Ren tried not to frown, wondering why Makoto was still all torn up about something that happened years back. “I won’t say anything else about it while I’m here.”

“Good, please keep it that way and we won’t have any problems.” Makoto sighed, wondering if he was making a huge mistake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Chapter 20!
> 
> Surprise! I bet none of you were expecting that, like I've been planning this for like a month! Ren is such a ding dong, I had to bring him into the story so now there are like four sets of brothers~ 
> 
> I hope you're looking forward to what's next because I'm literally going to pull the weirdest ship out of my ass with this fic. Ren has backstory to be developed too, so I hope you're excited for that since it directly feeds into Makoto's development as well! I promise that Ren isn't Plot Device™ #828234798
> 
> (ALSO GIMME A COMMENT IF YOU LIKE THIS FIC SERIOUSLY I ONLY EVER GET LIKE 3 ON A CHAPTER AND SOME OF THEM GET NONE, IF YOU LIKE THIS FIC PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE TELL ME!!!! IT GIVES ME INCENTIVE TO WRITE AND UPDATE MORE OFTEN!)
> 
> Thanks for reading! <3


	21. Bento Boxes and Beef Steak

            Ren had his suspicions fairly quickly. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to realize that not everything Makoto told him panned out correctly. After doing a bit of snooping, he’d noted that there was only one bed in the room they claimed to share. Of course, the nail in the coffin was the morning he’d seen Makoto peck Haru on the cheek before he left with the boys.

            His next question was how exactly he’d go about talking to Makoto about it. The cat was out of the bag, and it made him feel a little relieved. There was never a chance for him to explore those feelings before. It was around first year of high school when he began to notice that maybe… not everything was what it was supposed to be. It was why he had to quit the volleyball team.

            “It’s time to leave,” Haru pulled his jacket off the peg near the door. Ren was wary of Haru, even though he seemed to be kind to Makoto. Ren could tell that he didn’t trust him, only cemented by the fact that he refused to let Ren stay at home alone. It was a little annoying, but he ignored it because the aquarium was such an amazing place to spend his days.

            “Yeah, I’m ready,” he replied. The commute was usually silent, not that Ren minded. That was the one of the things he actually liked about Haru. There was never any pressure to keep a conversation going, so even when it was dead silent, it didn’t feel too awkward. He just stared out the window and counted the cars they passed by.

            He bid Haru farewell after they arrived, knowing he would disappear behind large double doors and not reappear for a number of hours. So Ren would sit in front of the aquarium tanks and watch the sea creatures, rotating every so often so that he had memorized the recordings that talked about.

            “The Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin is a species of bottlenose dolphin that grows up to nearly three meters long and can weigh up to two hundred and thirty kilograms,” he quoted with a sigh. As much as he hated to admit it, Ren was… bored.

            “Having fun?” Ren turned to see a man with short pearl-colored hair and purple eyes staring back at him. He carried two bento boxes in his hands and offered one to Ren.

            “Uh, kind of?” He shrugged. “What’s this for?” He pointed to the bento, wondering what on earth could be happening.

            “You’ve been hanging around for a week or so and I don’t think I’ve seen you eat anything, so I thought it might be nice to make you a lunch,” he smiled gently. Ren ducked his head down in a blush and took the box from the man’s hand.

            “I’m Hayato, by the way,” he offered. “Nice to meet you.”

            “Ren,” was all he could say. He was too flabbergasted to do otherwise.

            “You know Haruka, right? I’ve noticed you usually leave when he does, is he your roommate or something?” He asked, taking a seat next to Ren on one of the plush benches without asking.

            “Something like that,” Ren replied. His new companion stayed quiet while he ate, staring at the dolphins that swam around in front of them. Ren stole a few glances at Hayato while he ate, wondering why someone who was so cute would ever feign interest in someone like him.

            “Are you going to eat?” Hayato asked, breaking Ren out of his reverie. He nodded and pried the lid of the small black container.

            “T-teddy bear?” Ren was even more embarrassed than he was before! What kind of guy made lunch for another guy and then shaped it into something as obnoxiously adorable as a teddy bear?

            “Yeah,” he chucked nervously. “My brother always asks me to make him dorky ones, so I kind of made it that way without thinking about it. If I make you another one, I’ll make it normally.”

            Ren practically fell over himself. “No! I mean, I, uh, it’s okay. It’s cute,” he swallowed hard, his mouth suddenly dry.

            “Does that mean you want me to make you lunch again?” Hayato asked, looking at Ren expectantly. “It’s really no trouble. There’s not much of a difference between making two or three.”

            Ren felt bad. He had no money, and he couldn’t really ask Makoto for any cash either. “I can’t give you any money for them, sorry.”

            “No worries, I don’t want any money. It’s just nice to eat with someone for once. Haru isn’t exactly the most sociable person in the world and Miho is a little too old for me to get along with,” he explained, eliciting a chuckle from Ren.

            “There’s nothing wrong with being quiet. It’s nice to enjoy the silence sometimes,” he replied.

            “I guess not, but I like talking with people. After elementary school, I pretty much forgot how to be shy,” he dropped a piece of rice on his shirt and Ren reached over without thinking about it and plucked it off.

            “Sorry, that’s just a little pet peeve of mine.” It was especially taxing around Rin and Nagisa because the two were so rambunctious that they didn’t mind when they spilled food on themselves. That practically drove Ren up the wall, but there wasn’t much he could do about it so he suffered quietly.

            “Oh, I didn’t even see it,” he pulled at the collar of his shirt, making sure that he hadn’t stained it or gotten any more food on it. “Thanks for the save.”

            “Yeah,” he said, working them back into a silent moment. However, this was definitely more awkward than it had been with Haru. Ren didn’t get what was motivating Hayato to reach out to him. It wasn’t like strangers normally made people lunch and then tried to get to know them. It only made him seem like he had an ulterior motive.

            “Ah! I need to get back to work before Goro notices I’ve been slacking off. I’ll see you tomorrow, Ren! Pork or chicken?” Hayato hurriedly tossed the half-eaten bento back into his bag and started rushing away.

            “Pork!” Ren called after him without a second thought. If nothing else, at least he wouldn’t have to wait around all day hungry or bring something with him on his own.

            Ren spent the rest of his time at the aquarium in a stupor, so much so that Haru was forced to find him when it was time to leave.

            “Haru, can I ask you something?” he asked when they were seated in the car.

            “Hmm?” Haru gazed at him with a bored expression.

           “Um, how did you get m-my brother to like you?” Ren dropped the bomb, causing Haru’s expression to flicker towards surprise.

            “Did one of the kids tell you?” He accosted, grimacing a little. Wait, the kids knew and they didn’t bother telling Ren?

            “It wasn’t hard to figure out, actually. Sorry if I wasn’t supposed to know,” Ren turned to look back out the window.

            “Hayato told me he spoke with you. Is that why you’re asking me about Makoto?” Haru turned the key in the ignition and the sudden burst of cold from the air conditioner sent a chill down Ren’s spine.

            “No! Definitely not,” he protested. There wasn’t any way he could want to know how to make Hayato like him.

            “Ren,” Haru turned to stare daggers at him. “You’re gay, aren’t you? Is that why you ran from your wedding?”

            Ren’s chest ran cold. This was the first time anyone had even suggested it to him. He wasn’t… gay, was he? Just because he liked to look at muscles rather than boobs didn’t mean anything, right?

            “Don’t lie.”

            “M-maybe I am, please don’t tell anyone, I can’t… deal with it right now, I don’t want to deal with it,” Ren pulled his knees up into the seat with him. This was what he was always afraid of. How could anyone find out when he’d done basically nothing except ask a silly question?

            “Ren, look at me,” Haru demanded. Ren hesitated for a moment, but slowly brought his brown eyes up to meet the Haru’s piercing gaze. “Makoto won’t stop loving you if you tell him. We’ve been together for a few months. If you need to stay with us, I’ll arrange it, but you have to not reject yourself because of it.” That was the most he’d heard Haru say to him in the week he’d been there.

            “How can you say that so easily? You don’t know what I’ve gone through,” he brushed it off. How could Haru know?

            “You don’t know what I’ve been through. I have two kids and no wife,” Haru returned.

            “Why do you care? You don’t know me either,” Ren adamantly opposed letting Haru in. He didn’t even want to let Makoto know, so how could he let a stranger know?

            “I care because you’re Makoto’s brother, and we decided to be a family. That makes us family as well.” Haru had his own reservations about Makoto’s brother, but he was beginning to realize that he was really just a misguided kid. Ren was barely even twenty years old, so how could Haru hold it against him? Haru hadn’t known anything when he was twenty, and he’d already had a son.

            “That’s nice of you to say, but y—”

            “No buts, I mean it. I’m the last person that could judge you, and I won’t say anything to Makoto. If you want to pursue someone, you should take the opportunity. I can’t promise that I’ll be of much help, but I do know a little bit about Hayato. He likes candy and salty chips,” Haru tossed the car into drive and pulled out of the parking space.

            Ren laughed a little. “Do you only know what kind of food he likes?” His father had always said that his mother had won him over with food. Maybe the old adage that the fastest way to a man’s heart was through his stomach was true.

            Haru shrugged. “He thinks I’m unsociable, so.”

            Ren chuckled a little and slowly uncurled from the ball he’d been in. Perhaps he’d misjudged Haru after all. He was being grossly overprotective of Makoto and it must’ve resulted in him being cold towards Ren as a defense mechanism.

            “Only because you have bitchy resting face,” Ren replied. Haru shot him a sideways look.

            “What the hell does that mean?” Haru felt like he might not want to know the answer.

            “You always look angry, so you have bitchy resting face. It’s a pretty straightforward concept. That big guy Makoto knows has it too,” Ren didn’t remember his name, but he knew his face.

            “Sousuke,” Haru sighed. “He does seem pretty pissed off all the time, but I don’t really look like that, do I?”

            Ren suddenly felt bad. “Maybe a little? I wouldn’t worry about it too much. You’ve made it this far and no one’s seemed to mind.”

            Haru glared at him and Ren clammed back up. Definitely don’t mention his angry face, Ren thought.

            The next morning, Ren was the first person dressed and urged Haru to hurry up. “Where’s the fire?” Makoto questioned, wondering why Ren was so energetic that early.

            “N-nowhere! I just fell asleep really early last night and I’m ready to get going,” he lied. The truth was, he wanted to make Haru stop somewhere on the way to work so he could buy candy and salty chips for Hayato.

            And so he did. Haru was reluctant, but let Ren use his debit card to make the purchase, running him off after he got to work. Ren waited impatiently for lunch time, making his rounds in the aquarium much faster than usual.

“The Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin is a species of bottlenose dolphin that grows up to nearly three meters long and can weigh up to two hundred and thirty kilograms,” he quoted in frustration, tired of listening to the droning voices of the recordings. It was nearly the same time that Hayato had shown up the day before and Ren was ready for lunch.

“Do you have that memorized?” Ren shot a foot in the air at Hayato’s sudden arrival. “Are you okay?”

Ren smiled, realized what he was doing, and then quickly introverted. “Yeah, I’m fine.” Hayato laughed, sat next to him, and then handed him a bento box. The one from yesterday had been flat black, but today’s box was dark blue with three white lines across the outside. The lunch was not in the shape of a teddy bear though, it was shaped like a dolphin.

“C-cute,” Ren stuttered, shoving a piece of pork in his mouth to keep him from acting like a moron. After a few minutes of stuttering through small talk, Ren reached over and pulled his bag towards him. His hands were shaking when he pulled the candy and chips out to give to Hayato.

“Are those salt and vinegar? They’re my favorite! Thank you!” Hayato pulled open the bag with vigor, Ren wrinkling his nose at the pungent aroma. At least Haru was right. Ren owed him one after that tip.

“You’re welcome, I heard you liked them,” he shrugged it off, hoping that Hayato wouldn’t make a big deal about it, but secretly wanting Hayato to make a big deal about it.

“Did you ask Haru about it?” he inquired, making Ren turn red because he’d been caught.

“Maybe a little?” Ren lied. “I just wanted to make up lunch to you,” another lie. How exactly could he say ‘I have a small crush on you’ without getting no homo’d or punched in the face? That was Ren’s worst nightmare.

            “That’s sweet of you, I think. I’m glad I decided to talk to you,” Hayato glanced up at the clock. “Crud, I’ve got to go. Thanks for the chips and candy though. Chicken or beef steak tomorrow?”

“I don’t like chicken, so beef steak,” Ren answered.

“How do you not like chicken? Whatever, tell me later. Beef steak tomorrow it is!” Hayato shot him a blinding grin as he rushed back to work. Ren simultaneously felt like he was flying and about to die at the same time. Was this what it was like to… like someone who might like you back?

As soon as Ren was in the car with Haru, the floodgates opened. Haru had made the mistake of asking him how lunch had gone and then suddenly Ren was flying off at the mouth more than he had in what felt like years. Depression was weird for him, but the new environment and less anxiety made him feel like he hadn’t in a long time.

            “Ask him out then,” Haru suggested. Easier said than done.

            “Are you crazy? I could never, and it’s only been two days,” Ren retorted, totally closed off to the idea.

            “So? I was living with your brother within a week of meeting him,” Haru brushed it off like it didn’t matter. Everything happened for a reason, probably.

            “What? Are you serious? How on Earth did that happen?” Ren was genuinely curious. He hadn’t even been told how the two men met.

            “Ex drama,” was all Haru divulged. It made sense, and somehow told him basically nothing.

            “Huh,” was all Ren said.

            “Ask him out,” Haru repeated. “You’ll never know if you don’t try.”

            “What if he says no?” Ren pleaded.

            “Then you keep trying or move on. That’s how it works,” he replied. “Makoto didn’t say yes right away either.” That wasn’t surprising to Ren, honestly. Makoto had been through a lot with Chigusa and he didn’t think he’d ever be ready to be with someone else. It was amazing how much Haru managed to break through to him, but considering how he’d gotten Ren to open up, maybe it was a special skill.

            “So what did you do to get him to say yes?” Ren had to know. It must’ve been some amazing gesture that turned Makoto to putty in his hands.

            “Your brother got drunk and asked me out,” Haru chuckled. “He was really hungover the next morning, but it put us on track to be where we are now.”

            “So I should get him drunk and then make him date me? That’s what I’m getting from this,” Ren felt like that was probably a bad idea.

            “That means you have to ask him out first, but don’t get him drunk,” Haru commanded. So they were back to square one after all. Ren swallowed hard.

            “I’ll… do it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IM SO SORRY I DIDNT UPDATE FOR LIKE 4 MONTHS!!!!! I WAS DIAGNOSED WITH DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY AND I WAS TAKING A FULL LOAD OF CLASSES AND I SCREAMED FOR A LONG TIME!!!!
> 
> BUT I'm totally okay now and I can't promise this fic will update super regularly, but it won't be 4 months before I post the next chapter I absolutely promise that for realsies!!! 
> 
> ANYWAY, I hope you guys liked Ren and Hayato? Weird ship, I know, but it worked out well for this part. It'll lend a lot to the development of many characters so I hope if you aren't on board, you'll give it a chance!!
> 
> Thank you guys for your constant support even through the hiatus, I really appreciate all the comments and kudos and I updated it for you guys <333


	22. Ren Stuff and The Sex Part™

There were things that Ren remembered from when Makoto and Chigusa were dating, not many, but enough to give him at least an idea of what he should say to Hayato. Makoto always used to tell Chigusa how much he liked her eyes, a pretty teal if he remembered right. Compliments were the key to any courtship. Makoto and Chigusa had left when Ren was fairly young, so it was hard to say what he knew about her anymore. He never even saw Makoto after they moved when he was fourteen.

“Do you have a plan?” Haru asked, snapping Ren out of his daydream. Of course, this led to the butterflies Ren had been suppressing roaring back up in his throat.

“Compliments?” he chirped quickly, his mouth twisting in a nervous grin. Haru glared at him for a second, his eyes shifting between Ren’s, though he said nothing.

“I once told your brother that I loved his smile,” he turned his head to stare straight ahead. Haru’s face remained stoic as always, but his bright red ears gave away his embarrassment.

Ren’s, however, couldn’t hide his embarrassment. He was still getting used to being “out”, if it could be called that. Haru was the only person who knew of his affinity for men.

“D-did you really?” he stammered. That seemed so unlike him.

Haru didn’t say anything else, his shame of being caught as a mushy dweeb getting the better of him. The drive went on in relative silence because of this, though Ren was basically used to it after the week before.

Unfortunately, butterflies multiplied like rabbits, and before they had even entered the aquarium, Ren’s instincts were telling him to run screaming into the distance. His face felt hot and his bag felt like it weighed a million pounds.

“Calm down.” Haru rolled his eyes. “Even if he says no, it won’t be the end of the world.”

Ren felt like he was being brushed off a little bit, but Haru was probably right. The only real problem was waiting the better part of four hours for lunch time to roll around and have Hayato reveal himself with a cutesy bento box.

The wait felt like a lifetime, and it didn’t help that he’d listened to every exhibit about fifteen times already. Ren felt like he might go postal if he listened to another word about Indo-pacific bottlenose dolphins. However anxious he was, lying on the bench was probably not his greatest idea. He hadn’t slept too well the night before and passed out within moments.

“Ren?” a voice called, followed by a short giggle. “Wake up, Ren!”

He cracked open his eyes to a glimmer of pink and shot forward, nearly slamming his face into Hayato’s.

“Ah,” he cried. “Sorry, I was just, uh…” Ren flushed pretty quickly, knowing that it was time. Haru was lurking somewhere nearby, watching like a superhero in case anything went wrong.

“It’s fine, you have a cute sleeping face,” Hayato said handing him a red bento box. The plastic case had a flourish of little red hearts on it and Ren was pretty sure he was having a stroke. Compliments were his idea, and not only had Hayato already done it, he also had given him a bento shaped like cat.

“Do you like me?” Ren blurted out before he could stop himself, breaking eye contact immediately.

Hayato flinched, not sure what had happened in the short moment to give Ren that impression. “Excuse me?”

“I-I have a crush on you and I needed to tell you. I know we’ve only known each other a few days, but I think you’re cute and I’m gay so I’m sorry if I weirded you out or anything,” he rambled, nervously outing himself and then wanting to die.

Hayato stared at Ren’s nape for a moment, taking his words into consideration. He hadn’t meant for anything to happen between them, but Ren was his type. Cute and innocent boys were a thing he and his brother both liked, though Kisumi was much more salacious than Hayato.

“What do you want to do then?” Hayato asked, teasing him.

“Date you?” Ren sputtered, feeling like he was going to throw up. He never thought he’d get this far.

“Are you free tonight?” Hayato scooted closer, reaching up turn Ren’s head. He took a bit of delight in seeing how prostrated Ren had become in the few short moments.

 

~~~~

 

Makoto had taken special care to ensure that everyone was out of the house tonight. Ren had plans, surprisingly, and Sousuke had offered to babysit the kids. Makoto wasn’t too sure why, but he felt like everyone needed to be out of the house, out of earshot, out of even sensing his existence, in order to make the next move with Haru.

He hadn’t sex in the better part of a decade, excluding the few times that he and Haru had fooled around. Makoto’s libido made him desperate and act weird and he was pretty certain that his erection made it difficult to form rational thoughts. That was why he waited upstairs in nothing but his underwear for Haru, his face, ears, neck, back, and chest bright red. Haru was probably going to think he was crazy.

When Haru walked in the door, his first thought was that everything was eerily quiet. His next was that he could see a light on upstairs and was thankful that someone was home. It had been a long day of tending to sick fish and starving dolphins and he wanted nothing more than to fall into Makoto’s arms and relax. However, that was not what happened.

When he pulled open the door and saw Makoto lying on the bed, half-naked and half-asleep, a carnivorous part of Haru awakened. He dropped his bag and stripped out of his jacket and shirt in an instant. The kids weren’t home and the man he was in love with was waiting to be taken.

Haru dove into the bed next to Makoto, startling him with by pressing their lips together. In a matter of moments, the chaste kiss turned into a desperate moment of passion.

“You top.” He commanded, closing the distance to straddle the other man’s waist. Makoto’s hands were shaky as he brought them up to Haru’s sides, lightheaded as his fingers gripped lean muscles through clothing. It was only a matter of time before it all came off, he supposed.

Makoto was actually the first one to lose his cool as Haru felt his way down his chest. The nervous man’s nipples hardened under the cool air and Haru’s warm touch. “S-sorry, I haven’t done this in a while and never… with a man.” Makoto was scarlet, positively the brightest shade.

Haru’s free mouth came down to kiss Makoto on the neck, gently sucking on the supple skin there. “Don’t worry. We’ll go slowly then.” Makoto shuddered under his caress. “Take my shirt off.”

Makoto’s hands hesitantly grabbed the hem of Haru’s shirt, slowly lifting it up and off. His chest was just as he remembered it from that day Makoto had accidentally walked in on him in the bathroom. Makoto wasn’t sure when Haru found the time to exercise, but his chest and abs were tight and flawless. Haru’s hands travelled over a patch of Makoto’s chest hair, eliciting a small moan from him.

Now that they were both shirtless, Haru pushed Makoto down flat onto his back, pinning Makoto’s arms above his head. He immediately began rubbing their crotches together, reveling in the expression of absolute ecstasy that the brunet was making. Makoto’s eyes were shut tight, brows drawn down, bottom lip nearly pierced by his upper teeth by how hard he was repressing the moans, how hard he was in general.

Makoto was certain that he would never lie with another person, and never considered that it would be a man. It never once crossed his mind that the hottest he would ever be in his entire life was with a man binding his hands tightly over his head and grinding their dicks together through their clothes.

“Gonna… too soon.” Makoto moaned, urging Haru to slow down. He wanted it to go on longer. The incessantly pleasurable grinding ceased in an instant. Haru must’ve wanted more as well. Makoto was so turned on that he was beginning to lose any shame that he felt. He only wished that Haru would release his wrists so Makoto could explore more of his perfect body.

Haru did let go of Makoto’s hands, but only so he could lower his own and spring the waistband of Makoto’s emerald briefs. “Wait, what if you don’t want me anymore after you see what, uh, I have?”

Haru sighed a bit and forced his mouth back onto Makoto’s to silence him. “I like you, don’t worry.” The elastic came down and he harshly palmed Makoto’s dick. “Do you want me to touch your filthy fucking dick, Makoto?” Haru whispered into his ear, suddenly clamping down on Makoto’s penis.

He could only lurch forward in a sudden wordless cry of pleasure, shoving his chest up into Haru’s. “Say something or I’ll stop.” He told Makoto, slowly running his fingers up and down the outline of Makoto’s hard-on through the underwear.

Makoto was conflicted. He was harder than he’d ever been, but he felt like Haru might have been coming on a little too strong for their first time together. In the end, his indecisive green eyes decided to throw caution to the wind. “T-touch me, please Haru.” His larger hand came down to cup Haru’s own and forced it into the opening in the front of his underwear.

“Pervert.” Haru chuckled, gripping the shaft and jerking him off. “Look at what a mess you are. You’re all hot and wet down there and I bet you can’t wait to get it in me.” The dirty talk was literally killing Makoto. He’d never had anyone talk to him like that before, but he wanted Haru’s low, rumbly voice to keep on him like that.

Haru continued to beat him until he felt Makoto throbbing in his hand. The man had brought Makoto to the edge again and then backed off at the last moment to keep him from finishing. While Makoto was struggling to recover from the near orgasmic incident, Haru sprung his pants and underwear loose and kicked them off.

Makoto’s dick had practically popped out of his the slit in his underwear, but Haru was the first one to be fully naked. He returned to straddling Makoto’s waistline and started rubbing their shafts together. Makoto was a bit hesitant to touch Haru’s for the first time, but he was dripping so much that each time their heads rubbed together, his vision flickered around the edges. It was too good and so hot that Makoto felt a hot, nearly painful pressure building in his hips. Just before Makoto could reach that sweet moment of explosive bliss, Haru’s hands and shaft went away.

Makoto was physically pained by the sudden lack of contact. He felt like he had electricity coursing through his veins and the cord had abruptly been ripped, leaving him burned out and wanting more.

Haru slipped off his lover’s legs again to search for his purchase in the nightstand. The bottle of lube fit snugly in his fist. “Take off your undies.” He told Makoto. “Unless you’re afraid of me fucking you into oblivion.” He turned, staring Makoto dead in the eyes with the same nonchalant face he always made. However, Makoto did notice how flushed Haru’s cheeks were and that his eyes were bright and tinged with a fiery lust that oozed out of his body. It only made him hotter.

Makoto carelessly tossed off his underwear. Haru had just had his dick right on him, so there really was no reason to worry. “Where did you get that? I didn’t buy it.” Makoto asked, a little glad for the momentary breather.

“I bought it when things started happening between us. I wanted to be able to take your dick at any second.” Haru shoved the bottle into Makoto’s hand. “Stick your fingers in and get me slicked up.”

Makoto gazed down at the clear bottle, not sure what to do. “I, uh, don’t know what you mean. Should I—”

“Just pour it on your fingers and shove ‘em in me.” Haru climbed onto the bed, back against the headboard and spread his legs so that Makoto could see it all. The larger man was worried that once he had seen this, all of Haru in his naked glory, that he would be disgusted and want no part of it. That wasn’t what his body was telling him. A voice in the back of his head was saying that he wanted it, to go in and plow until his hips were cramped and he could no longer produce another drop.

Makoto clicked open the bottle and poured some of it into the palm of his hands, holding them down so the thin fluid could run across all of his fingers. He knew very little about how two men had sex, but he imagined that it would probably require a lot of lube, a little bit of time to get ready, and a good position.

“Go already, I want you inside me.” Haru exhaled, suddenly submissive now that he was on his back. Makoto reached forward slowly, rubbing his fingers in a ring around the hole. Right away, he could tell it was going to be a different experience than with a woman. Haru relaxed a bit and a Makoto’s finger slipped inside. It was a little dry at first, but after applying more lube, Makoto was able to fit another finger in.

While Makoto was trying to figure out what to do, Haru was twitching with each movement of the thick digits inside of him. Haru hadn’t told Makoto this, but it was first time that he’d ever been with another man as well. Haru knew he was attracted to them, but beyond a passing kiss with a few here and there, this was the first time that one had been inside him. Haru chose to let Makoto top because he wanted it to be something that Makoto was at least mildly familiar and comfortable with.

“Condom, do you have a condom?” Makoto asked, using his free hand to grope for the nightstand’s drawer.

“I… forgot.” Haru mentally kicked himself. He had been so concerned about making sure there was lube that he’d missed one of the most important parts.

“Do you trust me?” Makoto surprised him, reaching with his left hand to cup Haru’s cheek. “I’ve only ever been with one person before.”

Haru was touched by the sentiment. “I’ve only been with one person as well, if you believe that I’m clean, then I’ll trust you with my body.”

Makoto’s eyes widened at his words. “You’ve… never done this before? You seemed so sure though, I can’t believe that, you were so amazing.” His fingers began moving again, sending Haru into small convulsions.

“Fuck, hurry up and get in me, Makoto. I can’t deal with just the fingers.” Haru was hyperventilating from the pleasure. Makoto’s fingers stretched him once more before sliding out. He brought the bottle of lube up to his hands to thoroughly coat his dick. Makoto was concerned about making sure he didn’t hurt Haru at all. He wanted their first time joined together to be memorable and perfect.

Makoto swallowed thickly, scooting his hips so that he was lined up with Haru. “Fuck me.” Haru wrapped his hands around Makoto’s neck and thrust his hips down crudely. The head of Makoto’s dick slipped right into Haru and he almost finished right there. Makoto couldn’t restrain the strangled cry that threatened to make him cum before the real fun had even begun.

The top pulled back and took a moment to steel himself before slowly pushing his way inside of Haru, the black haired man’s legs on wrapped around his waist, arms wrapped around his neck. Haru panted and squealed in pain and ecstasy as Makoto spread him open. The brunet never knew that he could have that kind of effect on another person, but it riled him up.

Haru opened his mouth to say something about Makoto being fucking filthy, but his words were cut off by Makoto taking the lead. Within a moment, Haru’s hips exploded in fire and pain and a deep searing carnal sensation so powerfully pleasurable that he was afraid he would black out and scare the hell out of Makoto who was struggling to keep his thrusts even and consistent.

The gripping moist heat was driving Makoto to highs he’d never reached before, giving him no moment of respite amongst the overwhelming perception. It felt like his hips were moving on their own and that he would die if he tried to stop them.

“Can’t fucking believe how good this is.” Haru slurred, drawing out the word ‘good’ into many more syllables than it should’ve been. They were both a sweating mess of lube and hair and spit as their mouths came back together, tongues smacking lewdly. Makoto scooped his arms under Haru’s body and pulled them further down on the mattress so that Makoto was practically crushing Haru under him.

“I’m going to break you.” Makoto rumbled, in a shallow and embarrassing attempt at dirty talk. Haru growled and pulled Makoto’s face back down, moaning into his mouth.

The top wasn’t sure how much longer he could keep it up. He’d already been close to finishing the few times that Haru had stopped him just before. The roiling and boiling and bubbling, burning fire had been building up so hard that Makoto felt like his balls would explode before he climaxed.

“About to… uhn, finish, Haru.” Makoto bit at Haru’s lip. The smaller man’s legs shoved hard against Makoto’s back, bottoming his dick out inside. Haru didn’t realize that he would cause himself to turn into a babbling, groaning mess when he felt the hot liquid pouring inside him. With their chests pressed together, Haru shot off more times than he could even count with all the white haze of pleasure ruining any thought he could muster.

When he began the strongest orgasm of his life, Makoto’s entire body tensed. He couldn’t breathe with how powerfully the pleasure was wracking through his body. Even though Haru was sullying their chests, he couldn’t bring himself to move away.

By the time they both came down from the high, they were too dazed to move.

Makoto collapsed onto Haru and held the two of them tightly together, despite the wet, sticky mess that Haru had made between them. He was still drunk on the feeling of being inside Haru and the aftershocks of his amazing orgasm.

Haru was incapable of moving. When he came, it felt like all the energy in his body had been expelled as well, leaving him exhausted but with an ineffable sense of satisfaction. When he finally had the ability to move again, the first thing he did was start kissing the side of Makoto’s face, enjoying the prickle of his five o’clock shadow against his lips.

“That tickles,” he laughed, a strange throw away from the rapturous moans just a few moments before.

“It didn’t tickle when you were ‘breaking me’.” Haru smiled, completely calling out Makoto’s poor attempt at seduction.

“S-sorry. I just thought since you were being all like that, that I could too. I just wanted it to be as good for you as it was for me.” Makoto sighed, eyes drooping a bit.

Haru felt a pang of regret. “It was hot. I’d let you break me whenever you ask.” He moved his hips a bit, causing Makoto to flinch at the sudden sensation.

“Hey!” He blushed. “I… thought it was kind of hot when you were taking the lead. I’ve never been treated like that. I thought I was just going to melt in your hands.”

Haru did chuckle a bit at that. “Next time, make your friend watch the kids for longer and we can go more than one round.” His lips pressed back into Makoto’s cheek.

“Stop it, you’re going to get me hard again.” Makoto pulled his sweaty hand out from under Haru’s back and pushed his face away. “I honestly just want to go to sleep.” He was totally wiped. Makoto had forgotten how taxing sex could be.

“Don’t. We need to shower before we pick the kids up. I kind of made a mess all over us.” Haru ran his hand between their chests, wiping the viscous fluid off on Makoto’s back.

He shuddered. “That’s cold.” The face Makoto made triggered Haru to kiss him on the mouth.

“Thank you.” He whispered, beginning to let go of the fear that he’d been harboring. The gentle green eyes that stared back at him had accepted his everything and assuaged those worries. “For not rejecting me.”

Makoto smiled and pressed their foreheads together. “I wouldn’t. I could never do that to someone I… care about like you.” Makoto was one step away from I love you, but he stopped himself. Unlike Haru, Makoto still had a block. Though his body was more or less willingly given to Haru, his heart was less easily won, but it was close enough that Makoto had nearly spilled the beans.

“I care about you too, Makoto.” Their lips pressed together slowly and sweetly and Haru was glad to just feel something for someone else again. “You’re getting hard again.”

“I can’t help it. Your mouth is amazing.” Makoto laughed softly.

“Round two in the shower?” Haru suggested, wrapping his arms back around Makoto’s neck.

“What if I slip?” His eyebrows went down in legitimate concern.

“Then I’ll catch you.” Haru crooned. “I’ll catch you whenever you’re ready to fall, Makoto.”

“How romantic,” he laughed into the other man’s neck. “I’m glad that we met.”

“You say while you’re impaling me with your fucking dick.” Haru faked offense. “That isn’t romantic at all.”

“Fine.” Makoto slipped out of Haru quickly, rattling both of them, and then he stood shakily from the bed. “I’ll shower alone.”

Haru hopped up as fast as he could and reached out for Makoto’s wrist. Unfortunately, bottoming had destroyed any ability that his legs had to carry him and Haru crumpled to the carpet. In an instant, Makoto was on the floor next to him, arms around his waist.

“Are you alright?” The look of concern was one he’d seen Makoto give Ai and Nagisa, but never him. It warmed his thawing heart.

“I’ve never been better.” He replied, leaning on Makoto as they stood and hobbled to the bathroom. Haru knew that this feeling in his chest was love, though he was a little afraid of it. As much as Makoto promised he wouldn’t reject him, he knew it was possible. Haru had been left by someone who promised to always be by his side and it had left him and his kids traumatized and with an enemy that he’d hoped to never have.

Makoto slid the door to the shower open as Haru collapsed onto the toilet. Once the water was sufficiently heated up, the two stepped in together. As the water washed away the mess that Haru had made, they began to kiss again. Just as passionately as before, Makoto hardened slowly. Haru shook his head. He was far too spent to be able to get it back up, so he slipped down to his knees in the torrent of water before Makoto.

“What are you doing?” Makoto asked, starting to lean down.

“My legs hurt. Oh, and I was going to suck your dick. Stand back up.” Haru flippantly sassed him. Haru wrapped his hand around the base of Makoto’s length, working it to make sure he was fully erect before he slipped his lips around the head.

Haru’s tongue worked its way across Makoto’s still oversensitive organ and he came immediately with a groan, flooding Haru’s mouth. He flinched a bit and swallowed as Makoto slumped limply against the shower wall. Haru’s hand came up to wipe his mouth.

“A little warning next time.”  Haru complained, using the wall to lean on as he stood back up.

Makoto’s weary eyes opened back up. “Next time?” He smirked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry that I didn't update this story for like 17 months and then this is what I gave you. In actuality, I wrote the sex part after like chapter 6 and then never had an opportunity to post it because the story just wasn't at that point. However, I've totally forgotten where the Ren thing was going, and what I was even doing next in the story for that matter, so I guess it should be interesting to see what my gay ass does next.
> 
> I do plan on updating it again sometime relatively soon since I don't feel like I'm dying, but that will have to be after I figure out what to do next and make it interesting. I'll probably try to wrap this story up in like 3-5 more chapters. I basically just need to go over what happens with Chigusa and then I have an endgame chapter idea ready to roll. I just feel bad about being one of those authors that writes a super long fic that just kind of peters out and there's no closure on anything that happens. SO, I'm going to finish this story so we can all sleep at night.
> 
> If you're reading this, thanks for sticking around for so long and you have my apologies for not updating it in a year and a half. See you soon?
> 
> XOXO


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